


Settling into Portia

by ForgotTheEgg



Category: My Time At Portia (Video Game)
Genre: End Game Spoilers, F/F, F/M, In this household we believe Aadit is the rouge knight, Messing With The Time Line, Oral Sex, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings, Public Sex, Semi-Public Sex, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex, even though I haven't finished the game lol, messing with characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:35:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 36,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27720812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ForgotTheEgg/pseuds/ForgotTheEgg
Summary: Licity's move to Portia wasn't necessarily planned, but now that she's moved here she couldn't imagine life any other way. While her goal was to restore her Pa's old workshop to glory and establish herself as a capable builder, life has a silly little habit of getting in the way...(If you just wanna read explicit stuff it starts in chapter eleven!)
Relationships: Aadit/Female Builder (My Time At Portia), Female Builder/Gust (My Time At Portia)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 32





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story will follow mostly the cannon and timeline of the game, but I will be playing with time a little bit because like, the game moves pretty quickly and we wanna get a nice, slow burn going. Some chapters as we get later in might be explicit, but I'll make sure to tag those accordingly so that you may skip if you want to. I have two main ships planned for this game (those are tagged lmao) but I mean we'll see! The story is young.

I had been in Portia for about a month, at this point. My father, who left wordlessly in the night when I was young, had sent a letter, the keys to a workshop in the city state of Portia along with an invitation to take over the business he had apparently been running here the past 20 years. I didn’t want to come at first, the invitation feeling too good to be true, a chance to see my father for the first time since I was four, but since my mother had died I had nothing to keep me in Barnarock. I packed my bags and sailed to Portia only to find that he had already left, once again fleeing his responsibilities and running off to explore the barren and dangerous Eastern Continent.

Upon my arrival, the mayor Gale had expected me to take over my father’s workshop, left in a sorry state after what appeared to be at least a year of disuse. I was studying to be a builder back in Barnarock, but I was unprepared for what it would be like out in the real world on my own. Even though Gale and Pressley talked my father up as a grand builder, his building manual was incredibly limited, and I was forced to build all the machines I needed to even work myself. There were other builders who had been in Portia long before I, and yet I had been immediately given the grand task of building a bridge and helping create a whole new method of transportation for the city. A month in, and I was utterly exhausted.

I pull my knee up closer to me in my chair, and look at Emily and Antoine at the table across from me and smile. Emily, the farmer girl who lives across from me with her grandma on the outskirts of town, has been my only real friend in the month that I’ve been here. Earlier in the day she asked that I come to dinner with her and her friends at the Round Table, the only restaurant in town, and I had been more than happy to accept the offer. I’ve been working so hard that I haven’t had the chance to truly meet most of the people in town, only brief interactions to ask for directions or help, maybe a quick introduction.

“So how’s that old house? It can’t be pretty in there.” I turn to look at Sonia sitting next to me, still in her waitressing uniform fresh off her shift.

“Oh, it’s definitely not cute,” I say, laughing a little. “I don’t understand it, truly. Like, I know my father packed up all his belongings when he ran off to go explore the eastern part of the continent, but the man lived here for 20 years! How is the building only one room? I practically sleep on top of the oven, it’s a miracle that my bed hasn’t caught on fire.” Antoine laughs, and I revel in the warmth of his voice. It’s been too long since I’ve hung out with people my age.

“That’s absolutely tragic. Where do you fit all your skincare products? Your clothes?” He asks with a shiver of disgust. Emily laughs and I follow suit, happy to be included. “You’ll definitely need to fix that house up. Albert and Gust—”

“Did someone say my name? Were you looking for me?” Albert asks, appearing as if almost from nowhere behind us and lazily draping an arm over both Sonia and I.

“Absolutely not. Get out of here!” Sonia pushes his arm off, but she doesn’t look angry. She’s smiling as she does it, making it seem as if this is a common occurrence.

“Anything for you, my queen.” He kisses Sonia on the cheek and saunters off, spinning in a circle to point finger guns and then back towards the game room of the establishment.

“Oh, piss off! It’s ladies night!” Sonia yells across the room at him, but Albert just shakes his ass in a little dance and yells back “I worship you!”

I laugh along with the rest of the group and turn back towards Sonia. “Are you and Albert, like, a thing?”

“Oh god no. He wishes.” She flips her hair and picks up her drink, seductively using her tongue to get the straw into her mouth. Albert misses the dartboard in the back, throwing it straight into the wall as he watches her. Django runs towards him.

“Sonia wants to make him really work for it,” Emily explains. “Which is a rare thing for her to do.”

“Hey! Are you calling me a slut?”

Antoine pipes in, laughing. “You chose those words, sweetheart.” Sonia flips him off but laughs as well. Antoine turns his attention back to me. “You’re new here, so I guess I’m just going to have to fill you in.”

Emily smacks his arm. “Antoine, geeze, she just got here. I’m sure she’s not yet thinking about the dating scene here. She barely knows anyone.”

“Well she knows me now!” He grabs my hand across the table, practically standing so he can lean over close. “I can tell we’re going to be great friends, and friends tell friends about who’s hooking up!” I stare back at him as he smiles and makes wild eyes.

“Who’s… hooking up?” I finally ask after a moment of awkward silence between the two of us. He lets go of my hands and flings them into the air.

“Everyone!” He sinks back into his seat as Emily and Sonia laugh. “Listen, Portia is a small, small, small small small town. There’s not exactly a big dating pool here.” He takes a sip of his drink and then folds his hands together, as if he was explaining a serious, much deeper topic.

“There’s us, now including you,” he says, booping me gently on the nose, “in what I like to call the 20’s group. It’s the now four of us, Gust and Albert, Oaks, which by the way if you haven’t met him, oh GOD is that boy stupid hot.” He stares off into the distance for a moment before resuming. “Oh, wait, there’s uh, Alice, Nora, Petra and then Sam.”

“Oh, that’s quite a few people.” I sit back in my seat, trying to remember who I’ve met, putting names to faces. “And they’re all paired up?”

“Oh god no,” Emily says, surprising me. She seemed to me when I met her as a very wholesome, innocent farm girl, but the longer I’ve talked to her at dinner tonight the more I’ve grown to realize that she’s a normal, 20-something girl like me. “We’re all just hooking up, pretty much. I mean, we’re young. I’m sure we’ll settle down or something later but it’s not my priority, at least.”

“I mean, I don’t even think I want to end up with someone here, probably,” Sonia says. “I want to go out and travel the world, maybe marry someone from a big city like Atara or Highwind. I haven’t decided.” I nod.

“Anyways back to meeeeee!” Antoine clears his throat, and begins his very serious discussion again. “Then there are the 30-year-olds. They don’t claim to be as… shall we say, horny, as the rest of us, but we all know they’re still fucking. There’s some crossover between the groups for sure.”

“And who might they be?” I ask. Antoine made it seem like the dating pool was small, but I feel overwhelmed. Maybe it’s different though, if you know everyone’s history and connections, especially if they really are all fucking each other. I wonder if they get jealous at all, or if there’s some unspoken agreement between the young adults of the town.

“So the 30’s are like, Lucy and Phyllis, any of the Hulu brothers—”

Sonia interrupts. “Oh god, imagining any of them fucking makes my head hurt.”

“But you know someone’s done it,” Emily whispers. “Apparently Lucy got real drunk one night and slept with one of them, but she doesn’t know which one.” Sonia nods.

“Anytime she ends up in the same building or area as one of them, she tries to flee,” Sonia adds.

“LADIES! Oh my god, ANYWAYS,” Antoine says, shooting the two of them a look, “Arlo, Remmington, Paulie I think? And the love of my life, the beautiful, the kind, smart, intelligent Dr. Xu.” Antoine trails off, a dreamy look in his eye.

“Are you sleeping with Dr. Xu?” I ask.

“Oh god no, Antoine hasn’t gotten anywhere close to him,” Sonia remarks.

“But someday I will, by the grace of GOD I will.” Antoine grips the table and pushes down into his seat. “What I would do to get my ass absolutely demolished by that man.” I burst into laughter, as do Sonia and Emily. Albert looks at us from the back and Sonia winks at him, causing him to miss the dartboard again. The tall, blonde man with him rolls his eyes and then returns talking to Django.

“Oh, you can’t forget Aadit,” Emily adds.

“Who is he?”

Sonia jumps in. “He moved to town, like, four years ago, he works at the tree farm, but hasn’t really made himself a big figure here. Which is sad, because I’m sure he has a big figure,” she says with a smile in her voice. Antoine laughs.

“Oh! No, I meant him,” I say, pointing towards the blonde in the back. He momentarily makes eye contact with me and responds with a nasty look before turning towards Albert.

“Who?” Emily turns and looks. “Oh, that’s Gust. The mayor’s son?” I nod. “He acts high and mighty, but he’s a nice guy once you get to know him.”

“I know him,” Sonia says, leaning further back into her seat and picking up her glass.

“Nora said that he likes to be bossed around in bed,” Antoine says in a hushed tone, throwing a look over his shoulder. “For a Church of Light missionary, she sure is into some kinky shit.”

“Damn, he does?” Emily asks.

“Well, she might have said it was Paulie? I’m not sure. But god, could you imagine?” I laugh at Antoine’s brazen behavior.

I wasn’t sure of Gust, but I thought I might give him a try. Albert seemed nice, but I had a feeling Sonia was more into him than she was letting on, and didn’t want to interfere with our friendship before it even began. But there were so many more people to see in Portia, and I wondered if I was just getting distracted with what was in front of me.

I check my watch. “Oh shit, it’s almost midnight. I have some more work to get done before I go to bed.” I stand up, grabbing my coat and working my way towards the door.

“Wait!” Antoine grabs my hand. “When you drop off your commission tomorrow, and I know it’s coming tomorrow, could you at least wait until like, noon? Like, love you, but Higgins turns into a raging asshole when he sees you. Which,” Antoine says with a smirk, “his asshole pretty tight.”

“Oh my god, I can’t believe you did that with him,” Sonia says, smacking his arm while he laughs.

“Don’t worry, he ranted the whole time, I would never do that again. I think he gets off on rage,” Antoine replies, rolling his eyes. “He could probably rub one out just thinking about you.” My face flushes red and Sonia giggles before pretending to be serious and hissing “don't be mean!”

“Before you go! Could you stop by the farm tomorrow? I’m hoping to actually commission you, like, for real about some kind of watering system for the farm.”

“Of course! I’ll see you tomorrow morning!” I say to Emily before heading out the door.

Outside, I smile for a second before continuing on my way. It’s nice to have made some friends, and the insight on the complex web of relationships within the town was sure to help out.


	2. Chapter Two

I frown at the large pipe in front of me. Emily had tasked me with repairing the sprinkler system at the farm, which had seemed easy when she had first asked. The sprinklers themselves were easy enough to craft— while the valves were a bit difficult to find, once the materials were gathered I was able to build a head or two a day. What I hadn’t anticipated was actually removing the old system, left there and rusting from disuse. It made sense though, with Sophie being so old that nothing had been removed. Emily was busy all day tending crops, so I knew she would be too busy to have to worry about the old pipes.

I exhale determinedly, and get ready to pick up the first bit of the heavy pipe out of the ground. As I dig my fingers into the ground below it and begin to lift, I realize this task might take much longer than anticipated. The pipe is extremely heavy, and while I’ve gained some muscle during my time at Portia, carrying materials and spending all day on the crafting station, it’s still too much for me to handle. I drop the pipe. Maybe if I were to bring some kind of wheelbarrow or trolley over, so all I would have to do is put the pipe on wheels? 

“Do you need some help over there?” I look off towards the walls of the town, where one of the Hulu brothers is walking with a tall, stoney looking man. All of the brothers look the same, but the tall stranger catches my eye. Still far away I can’t tell much, but can see the outline of handsome features, and long, black hair pulled half up to keep out of his eyes. Before I can answer, they’re already headed over, with the brother taking the lead followed closely by the tall man.

“Oh, uh, yeah! Sure.” The two walk up next to me, and I get a better look at the tall man. He towers maybe a full foot above me, and is dressed rather warm for the weather. His lips, partially obscured by facial hair were downturned but full. His nose looked to have been broken a few times, turned slightly to the right rather than straight forward. He had a few wrinkles on his forehead and cheeks, but the few he did were deep. But what gave me pause was the stranger's eyes. They were a deep, woodsy shade of brown, and looked at me with warmth, but at the same time were filled with incredible sadness. Even though he looked at me in a neutral way, it’s like I can feel how tired he truly is, tired well beyond his years.

“I’m uh, just trying to pull these pipes out,” I say, turning my gaze away from the stranger to the rusted metal in the ground. “I’m building and installing some new sprinklers for the farm here, but I have to replace all the rusted pipes first. They’re a bit too heavy for me to grab.”

“I’m sure we could help with that,” the Hulu brother says, smiling and nodding at his friend, who nods slowly in agreement.

“Oh! God, I’m so sorry, I haven’t introduced myself yet, that’s so rude of me. I’m Licity, I’m the new builder in town. I just got here a little over a month ago.” 

“I’m Dawa, I run the tree farm just down the road that way,” the brother says, pointing down the road then sticking out his hand. I wipe my hands on my jeans and shake his hand, then turn to his friend.

“I’m Aadit.” He reaches out his hand and I shake that as well. It practically envelopes my whole hand. His fingers are long and thick, and I can feel years worth of calluses on them. His voice was somehow deeper than I expected, and he has an accent that I can’t quite place. 

“Alright. Dawa, Aadit,” I say, looking and slightly nodding at each of them in an attempt to make sure I remember their names. “If you wouldn’t mind, do you think you can maybe help just pull some of the pipes out of the ground? It looks like Emily might have covered them in just a thin layer of dirt, so it’s not like they’re buried. I’m going to get a trolley from my house so that they’re easier to move. I’ll be right back.”

As I run just across the street to my workshop, I look back over my shoulder. Dawa is struggling to lift a pipe out of the ground, but is slowly making progress. Aadit swiftly lifts one entirely out of the earth and gently places it back down, then looks towards me. Our eyes briefly meet again and I smile a half smile, before grabbing the trolley and pushing it back over.

“We might be able to make more progress if we split up a bit and start pulling pipe in different parts of the field,” Dawa suggests when I get back. 

“Oh, are you sure? If we work together it might be a bit quicker.”

“Nah, Aadit and I will move around ahead of you a bit and pull out some pipe to have it ready for you when you make your way around with that cart. C’mon.” Dawa heads off towards the back right of the field, and Aadit takes a step backwards but then pauses.

“You’re not going to be able to pick up those pipes on your own, are you.” I sheepishly nod and smile. “Maybe I’ll just stick a bit closer to you then. I’ve already pulled a few up that you can load into the trolley.”

“Thanks.” I smile again and blush a bit before starting the process of loading the pipes. 

What’s wrong with me? I need to stop smiling so much. The stranger— Aadit, is going to think I have some kind of schoolgirl crush on him. Which maybe I did? I shake my head as I load another pipe into the cart. Snap out of it. You’re just probably… intrigued by another new stranger, a potential friend. But as I load the few pipes into the large trolley, I can’t help but think of his beautiful, sad eyes. 

After putting the couple of rusted pipe bits into my cart I turn around expecting to see Aadit there, but to my surprise, he’d already moved on. I pause to listen for him, and after hearing a small rustle to my left I begin to wheel the cart towards him. I find Aadit trying to lift a rather large rusted bit of metal out of the ground, the muscles straining in his back visible even through his shirt. 

“I can help you with that big pipe you’ve got there,” I say, blushing immediately after the words come out of my mouth. Oh, I hope he doesn’t interpret them in the wrong way. He sets the pipe back down and turns around to look at me, only a hint of a smile on his lips.

“I’d appreciate that.” I move to help, and on the count of three we lift up the pipe and set it in the cart. “It might be easier if we handle the pipes together.” I nod, careful not to make eye contact, hoping Aadit won’t see how embarrassed I am. We work in silence for about a minute before he breaks the silence again.

“I don’t blame you if you’re a little intimidated right now, with Dawa and I.” He pauses. “Well, especially with me. I know I might look a little scary at first, but I promise I don’t bite, though I think some of the kids here think I do.” He makes eye contact with me and smiles.

“Oh! No, I’m so sorry, I hope you didn’t think that. I’m just a bit overwhelmed, with the new pipes and the old pipes and I’m just thinking about…” I say, trailing off, but unable to break eye contact.

“The pipes?” I give another little half smile and nod.

“The pipes.” We lift another pipe into the cart, slowly working our way around the field. I give a little laugh, and continue. “I know what you mean about the kids, though. I tried to introduce myself to the little boy that hangs around Django all the time, and he literally just said ‘you’re a stranger’ and walked off.” Aadit lets out a little hum of a laugh noise.

“You’ll find that most of the people here in town are pretty nice though. They’re a kind people. Especially Dawa, he helped me out a lot after I came here, about 5 years ago now.”

“Oh? Where are you from?” Another pipe in the cart. I can see we’re getting closer to Dawa, who only has about 2 pipes pulled. The sadness deepens in Aadits eyes when I ask. 

"Up from between Ethea and Duvos in a small town that… probably doesn’t exist anymore.” His eyes shift away, looking more closely at the ground now than the pipe we carry between us.

“Oh, I’m… so sorry to hear that. I’m sorry I brought that up.” 

“No, it’s fine,” Aadit says with a weak smile, looking at me again. “It’s only natural to be curious.”

I bend over and pick up a large pipe connector that’s been rusted out. It’s smaller than the pipes we’ve been putting in the cart, but almost as heavy.

“Let me help you with that.” Aadit slips his hands directly under mine to help support the weight, and I feel my cheeks light up with heat. We slowly make our way over to the cart, careful not to drop the connector. It’s almost harder to manage this piece, as it’s small enough that we keep stepping into each other. When we get to the cart, our eyes meet again and don’t break contact. I don’t want to look away from the deep brown pools filled with sadness. Aadit doesn’t look away either, almost as if he’s searching from it. 

After maybe 10 seconds or so, we drop the piece into the cart, almost now full. I run my hand through my hair and turn away, and Aadit looks for Dawa, who I hear call out from nearby. 

“I’ve got almost all the pieces up in this area when you’re ready to head on over!” he called out. I turn back to Aadit.

“Shall we?” He nods, and I push the cart towards Dawa while Aadit follows close behind.

As we load up the last of the pipes into the cart, Aadit and I remain silent while Dawa blathers on about how heavy the pipes were, but how he can handle it. He says my name, breaking my train of thought about the moment I shared with Aadit only a few minutes before.

“Say, Licity? We could use something like this down at the tree farm, you know. A big old irrigation system. A little more complex than this, but you wouldn’t have to pull up any rusted pipes.” Dawa guffaws, and I smile and nod.

“That sounds good! But, complicated how?”

“Well, there’s no existing watering system,” Aadit chimes in, “so we’d have to install that ourselves. Problem is all the roots from the trees, so it couldn’t be underground.”

“Well, that and all the Panbats,” Dawa says. He has my attention now, and I turn towards him, shocked.

“You’ve got Panbats in there?” 

“Yeah, it stays pretty nice and dark in there during the days, so we’ve somehow gotten a flock in there over the spring while we’ve been closed. We’ll— I’ll have to deal with those first,” Dawa says, and Aadit gives me a knowing smile and a wink. My heart skips a beat.

“It… sure sounds interesting. I’m in, I guess!” Dawa pumps his fist. 

“Alright! You and Aadit and I can meet up for dinner tomorrow maybe and start going over some plans. The girls at the research center might have an idea as to what we can do there too.” I nod, then pause to take a look at the work we’ve done.

“God, I think we’ve got them all. Thanks so much for all your help here.”

“No, thank you!” Dawa says. “We finally got the chance to meet you, and we’ve gotten a nice little deal out of it too! We’ll see you tomorrow at 8!” Dawa waves and runs off towards the town. Aadit lingers behind.

“It was nice meeting you, Licity,” he says, gently clasping a hand on my shoulder before running off after Dawa. For such a short man, he sure did move with speed.

I wheel the rusted pipes back across the dirt road to my workshop, but instead of putting them away I dump them outside and run into my house, quickly kicking off my shoes, hopping straight into my bed. I wrap myself tightly in my blankets and stare up at the ceiling, thinking about the man with the sad eyes, who touched me ever so softly. I roll over, wishing desperately that he would touch me again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thnx for reading xoxo next chapter will be out 10/12/20 xoxo


	3. Chapter Three

I knock on the door and wait for an answer. I’m standing outside of Gale’s house with a wicker picnic basket in my hand, a commission I had seen posted on the job board in the commerce office earlier in the week. He hadn’t been in his office when I had swung by, so I thought I might check by his house. I’m beginning to sweat under the early summer sun— Portia is quite a bit warmer than Barnarock— when I decide to knock once more. As I’m turning away, I hear a faint “coming!” through the heavy wooden door and begin to panic slightly. Am I at the wrong house? 

A small, frail looking girl with bright orange hair opens the door and smiles at me.

“Would you like to come in?” Her voice is a whisper, but she doesn’t stop her warm, muted smile. Her eyes are happy, but extremely tired. She looks to be only my age, but feels as if she’s seen a full lifetime. 

I close my mouth, which I only just realized was open, and nod and smile and walk past her into the living room. The house feels a lot larger inside than it did from the outside, and the room I’ve just walked into appears to be a family/dining room combination. I spin around after taking the room in to face the pale girl, who is slowly making her way over to a chair.

“Is… Gale home? He posted this basket as a commission a few days ago, and I tried to find him at his office to give it to him, but he wasn’t there so I figured that I’d… come here…” I trail off, realizing how redundant and silly I sound. She flops down into her chair, seeming exhausted from the walk to the door and back. “Oh! I’m Licity, we haven’t met yet. I moved in a few months ago. Are you…?

“Gale’s daughter.” She smiles warmly again, trying to hide her fatigue. “I’m Ginger. I don’t tend to go outside too often, I’m sure you understand, as redheads burn quite easily,” she jokes, letting out a small tinkling laugh. I laugh quietly in return, taking in her sharp features, her cheeks hallow, her lips soft and pink, her eyes a beautiful cerulean shade. I brush my hair back and break eye contact. 

“It’s nice to finally meet you. This is a lovely home.” She glances quickly around the room and nods.

“My father and mother built it. I think they did a rather nice job.” Her eyes grow distant and happier as she continues. “They built quite a lot of this town together, or at least my father and Uncle Russo did, I guess. That’s why my father’s the mayor, he truly does love this town, almost more than he loves Gust and I.” She laughs her wonderful, musical laugh. I smile back at her.

“That’s really cool, how involved your family was. Who’s your mother? I don't think I've met her.” Ginger keeps smiling, but the intensity has faded.

“She unfortunately passed away, years ago.” Her eyes cloud over. I set the basket on the table next to me and sit in the chair next to her.

“Oh! I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize that.” I take her hand in mine and squeeze as she looks back up to weakly smile at me. “I lost my mother too, about a year ago. I understand how hard it is to lose a loved one.”

“Thank you, it’s alright. It was a while ago. And enough with the bummer,” she says, righting herself in the chair. “I’ve decided that today is a happy day. After all,” she says, “I met you.” I smile back at her, wide and goofy.

“It’s nice, you know, coming to Portia and being able to meet people, being able to meet girls around my age,” I say, standing back up. “In Barnarock I had some friends, sure, but it was mostly my mother and I, and moving here was scary, but the community seems so wonderful and close knit.” Ginger leans towards me.

“Oh, you’re from Barnarock? You’ll have to tell me all about that. I’ve never travelled, there, or anywhere really.” She smiles wide, then leans back. “Oh, I’m sorry, sometimes I get a little over excited. I know you just came here to drop off the commission—” 

“Oh! No, it’s completely fine. Believe me, I have plenty of time.” I have the feeling that Ginger doesn’t have many friends. I’ve never heard Sonia or Emily bring her up in the months that I’ve been here, or anyone else, really. Ginger seems like a nice girl, but how had I hadn’t heard of her, or seen her anywhere? “Well, it’s across the sea, and quite a bit colder there than it is here—” 

The door behind us opens, and I turn to face Russo as he walks in.

“Ah, Licity, I see you’ve dropped off the mayor’s commission, as well as met Miss Ginger.” Ginger blushes besides me.

“Yes! Yeah, yes, I did!” Russo seems a kind man, but for some reason I still find him incredibly scary. I stumble over my words as I speak. “ I was just telling Emily about home, about my old home, now I guess.” He nods and gives me a terse smile. 

“I just came home to help Miss Ginger take her medication.” Ginger tilts her head down so I can’t see her expression. 

“Oh, yes, of course, um, well I left the commission on the table here, I can just leave you two be for that.” I start to move towards the door, and Russo makes his way over to a cabinet on the wall. As I reach for the door, I hear Ginger call out.

“Wait! Licity.” I turn back around to look at her. I’m only maybe 15 feet away from her, but from this distance she looks so small. “Will you come back? To visit and chat?” Russo begins to speak, but I interrupt him.

“Of course I will! We’re friends now.” She smiles as Russo makes his way over with quite a collection of pills in a cup. I wave goodbye and walk out the door, pulling it closed tightly behind me.

************************************

I settle into my chair at the Round Table, across from Antoine. The group meets for lunch every week on Wednesdays, a nice little mid-week pick me up, and for drinks once a month, which is the meeting now. Antoine always arrives first, having run straight from the town hall to get here. Sonia, even though she works at the Round Table, likes to make her appearance a little late, usually after meeting up with one of Portia’s other residents. 

“So…. how’ve you been since Wednesday?” Antoine asks as Django hands me my drink. “I haven’t been seeing you as much at the commissions board. Instead it’s just been Higgins, talking shit about how great he is or whatever. God, I wish I could shove a sock in his mouth.” He rolls his eyes as I laugh, and Emily slides into the seat next to me. 

“It’s fine, or whatever, I’ve just been working on some commission for the Tree Farm. Dawa saw me putting in the sprinklers on your farm, Em, and wanted some for the trees I guess.” Emily shudders.

“Oh geeze, how is it working under his creepy gaze?” Emily’s face scrunches up.

“It’s fine, actually. It’s kind of funny, almost,” I say. “I usually ask him to get something for me, something small and meaningless, and he’s off trying to find it for the most part. I’ve mostly been working with Aadit, actually, he’s helping me lay pipes.” Antoine perks up.

“Oh? So he’s piping you? He’s laying your pipes?” Emily laughs, as do I, but I also dip my fingers into my drink and flick it at him. 

“Do you always need to go there? Shut up.” Sonia slides into the seat next to Antoine.

“What’s happening? What did I miss?”

“Aadit is helping Licity with,,, her plumbing.” He scrunches his nose. “Nope, lost it. I had a sex joke there and lost it.”

“Aadit is not… having sex with me.” I whisper the last part, and Emily giggles. “He’s just been helping me lay pipe at the tree farm, Dawa wanted a sprinkler system like Emily had put in at the farm.” Sonia nods slowly, and Django brings her a drink.

“You’re welcome!” We hear a voice from across the room yell, and all four of us turn to see Albert waving. Gust besides him rolls his eyes.

“That wasn’t from you! I told Django my order coming in!” Django sheepishly nods, as if to say ‘sorry.’ Sonia rolls her eyes and turns back to us. “He’s so needy. But how is it? Working with Aadit then.” 

“He’s so quiet! I feel like I’ve never heard him talk, really,” Emily says, swirling the straw in her drink around.

“He’s really nice! And tall. Good god, is he tall,” I say, laughing a little. “I don’t know, I guess. He is really quiet, but I feel like we have a fun time working still, you know?”

Antoine perks up. “I knew it! There’s something there! Maybe a baby crush, but it’s something!” I blush and look at my drink.

“No! It’s not like that.” Emily tilts her head to the side. “Well, maybe a little.” Sonia laughs as Antoine pumps his fist.

“Invite him to ladies night! I’m sure he’d love to spend hours here with us, gossiping and—” 

“Don’t even joke!” Sonia says, interrupting. “Ladies night is ~sacred.~” I giggle a little as she says that, but then pause.

“You know, I was wondering about that, or not for ladies night, but for lunch?” 

Sonia tilts her head, and hums “mmhm?”

“Well, not that we have to invite her, but I was just curious, do any of you hang out with Ginger? I met her the other day running a commission to Gale and felt bad I hadn’t met her yet, and she seemed really nice—” Emily puts down her drink.

“She is a nice girl, but she’s really sick.” Sonia and Antoine nod as Emily speaks. Sonia uncharacteristically looks serious, and Antoine face has gone red. “Like, really sick. I don’t think she can come outside very much.”

“Oh.” I nod solemnly. “I didn’t know. I guess when I was there Russo brought up medication.” Antoine then interrupts.

“She is a very,  _ very _ sweet girl, but she’s doesn’t really have the ladies night vibe, ya know? Not that we wouldn’t have her. I do quite enjoy talking to her during festival days though.” Sonia nods.

“Oh yeah, she’s a hoot on festival days. I absolutely love the dress she wears out for those.” 

The conversation kind of comes to stop as they all look at each other. Ginger must be a bit of a hot button issue, either for them or the whole town, even. In such a small town, someone with such a serious illness must be a hot topic for discussion.

“Sorry for bringing it up,” I say as Django drops off food. “I was just curious, ya know? I haven’t fully settled into the Portia scene yet.” Antoine smiles and nods.

“Believe me, you have no idea. As natives here, we’re hip to all the gossip. Really all this proves is that we haven’t been doing our jobs! Have we told you Nora’s a freaky bitch? Because, oh god, is she a freaky bitch.” Emily laughs and Sonia leans in, talking about something Nora did. I laugh along with the group, but continue thinking about Ginger. I had no idea the situation was so serious. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Gust from across the room, looking straight at me, almost through me. Our eyes meet, his filled with pure heat, and my ears flush red. I feel as if I’ve been caught doing something I shouldn’t have been. We keep contact for a few more seconds before I break it, overwhelmed by his intensity. I don’t look back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Thanks for reading. Obviously, there's nothing explicit in this chapter, but I did change the rating and added more tags. Next week's chapter WILL be explicit in a ~sexy~ way, and I'll make sure to specify how at the beginning of the chapter in the author's notes. 
> 
> I write my chapters a week ahead of time, so next week's will be up on time but the one after that might be late or shorter. I've recently lost two family members and things have been crazy, so I haven't had a lot of time to write or honestly, the will to. A lot of daydreaming but little typing. Thanks for understanding, and Happy Hanukkah!


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alrighty folks, this is when we get into the good stuff (kinda). This chapter (CW!!) has semi-public sex, oral sex, just kinda sexy stuff.

Noticing that it’s nearly 2am on my wrist watch, I poke Antoine to shake him from the trance he appears to be in. Emily left hours ago, her excuse having to get up early to tend the farm, and Sonia left about 20 minutes ago.

“Oh, Antoine, the bar is closing. We should probably head out.” I nudge him again.

“Hmm?” He shakes his head. We had been talking about the Commerce Guild for over an hour now, sharing our complaints about management and jokes about the other builders. Antoine had begun to slowly lower his head throughout the last couple of minutes, making me more cognizant of the time.

“C’mon buddy, let’s head out of here.” I stand up from the table and Antoine follows suit. Linking arms, we head towards the door, paying our tabs and skipping out into the night.

Once outside, I stretch my arms out wide beside me and feel the cool air against my skin, a sharp contrast to the heat of the day. Antoine takes a few steps towards the apartment building in town, then looks back at me over his shoulder.

“Did you want me to walk you back, or…?”

“No, thanks though. I might actually take a lap around town before I head back, it just feels so nice out.” I stretch my arms above my head, the air cool against the bit of stomach that’s revealed when I do so. 

“ ‘kay, be safe.” Antoine rubs at his eyes and shuffles off towards his apartment, and I head off towards the main plaza. 

The wishing tree stands tall in the middle of the plaza and I stare up at the branches, the faintest slivers of moonlight peaking through them. It reminds me of my first few nights in Portia; the house my father left me was beyond dilapidated, with large gaps in between the planks of the wall, the moonlight illuminating the single room, the wind howling through leaving me shivering in my bed. I had worked quickly to patch the walls, but I had been so afraid those first few nights, that I had made a terrible mistake moving to Portia.

I walk towards the steps to the second level of the city. I was glad I had stuck it out, that I had met Emily, that she had introduced me to so many wonderful people. I couldn’t imagine being all alone here.

I pause in front of the mayor's house and think about Ginger, how lonely she must be in there all day. I had meant it when I told her I’d be back, but I was more determined now to do so. Everyone deserves a friend, and while Antoine, Sonia and Emily spoke kindly of Ginger, it was obvious that them actually seeing her was a rare occurrence. 

I move to continue my walk towards home, moving towards the stairs to the center park, when I hear a noise from below. I move slowly towards the railing, and look over the edge. Leaning against the tree in the little park is Albert and Sonia, holding each other in a tight embrace and kissing passionately. I cover my mouth with my hand to muffle my gasp, but then lower it. I can’t believe she’s out here, with him! Especially after telling me only a few days ago over lunch that she was still making him wait it out.

Albert’s back is against the tree, and he has one arm wrapped around Sonia, and I assume the other groping her breast. He moves and kisses her neck causing her to let out a labored moan, and she whispers something into his ear. I want to run, but I feel frozen.

Before I can register what’s happening, Sonia has knelt before Albert and has pulled down his pants, freeing his fully erect cock. She licks up it’s length and swirls her tongue around the tip like she had done with the straw at the bar a few months ago before fully putting it in her mouth. 

Both my hands fly up to my mouth and I squeeze my eyes shut, whipping around to make a speedy exit. But my attempt to leave is cut short by a pair of strong hands grabbing my shoulders and pulling me forward. I open my eyes to see Gust before me, a stern but apathetic look in his eyes. He pulls me closer to the entrance of his house.

“How long have you been watching, pervert?” His tone is harsh, but there's still a hint of teasing in his voice.

“They’re, oh my god— it’s, oh god,” I whisper frantically, running my hands through my hair.

“Calm down,” he hisses, “I’m only kidding. Be quiet.” His voice is quiet and I can’t read the cold look in his eyes. I point behind me.

“They’re having sex, in the park!” I can only assume how wild my eyes are at this point.

“Yes, I’m well aware.”

“They! Sonia said—” 

“Sonia’s full of shit,” he says harshly. He stands at least half a foot above me, and I have to tilt my head up to make eye contact with him. His long, blonde hair sways gently in the wind. He looks beautiful in the moonlight, but the look on his face terrifies me.

“They do this every month,” he continues. “She has ladies night, or whatever,” he says, putting quotes around ladies night, “she gets really drunk, and they meet out here by the tree and… attempt to, well, fuck each other for lack of better words.”

“Oh my god, and you just watch them?” I step back, disgusted. “Jesus, who’s really the pervert?”

“No! Of course not.” His face is contorted by annoyance. “Once I caught on that it happened, I come out and I throw a rock at the tree above them or whatever, spook them off so they don’t… defile the park further. But you, tonight, you were a shock.”

“Me?”

“What are you doing out here? It’s two in the morning. My god, were you planning on joining them?” A corner of his mouth perks up in some kind of half smile, and I shove him in the shoulder, not enough to hurt but enough to get my point across.

“Oh my god,” I hiss, “no!” He smirks again.

“Well that’s good, as Albert’s oldest friend I should receive an invitation before you.” I scrunch my face up, and he gives me a dirty look. “Are you dense? Do you know what a joke is?”

Behind us suddenly, I hear Albert moan loudly, his breath hitching.

“Oh, fuck, baby, I’m going to cum—- Oh!” Albert moans loudly again, and I jump and throw my hands up by my head, my mouth open.

“Oh my god,” I whisper, and Gust looks up past me, the horror on his face mirroring my own.

“Fuck, hold on,” he says, looking around frantically. He moves to the side of his house, and I hear him kick over the trash can. Below us, I hear Sonia’s voice.

“Shit! Is someone there?” Gust moves back to me quickly, and puts a hand over my mouth, stifling my gasp. He pulls me closer to him, almost under the stairs leading up to the second level of his house. He holds me close under the stairs, his large hand still covering my mouth, and looks over his shoulder. After what feels like an eternity, I hear Sonia speak in a low voice.

“Albert, go.” I hear the sounds of clothing being rustled, and Gust continues to hold me close but removes his hand from my lips, instead placing a single finger on my lips to indicate that I remain quiet. We wait until we no longer hear footsteps or voices, my body pressed close to Gust, and I suddenly grow aware of how he’s holding me, his hand under my arm on my side, his palm practically on my breast. He doesn’t seem to notice, though, still with his head turned over his shoulder, listening for any signs of Albert or Sonia. His jaw is sharp, illuminated by the soft light coming through the slits of the stairs. 

When he is satisfied that no one will discover us, he drops his hands from my lips and side, and takes a step back from me. Our eyes connect, and it feels as if he’s almost looking through me, with how serious his expression is. Finally, he bites his lip and lets out a small laugh. He runs his hand through his hair, trying to quickly compose himself. 

“I can’t believe that happened. Jesus, I should have come out earlier to scare them.” He looks back down towards me. “If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have the unpleasant knowledge of how quickly my dear friend reaches completion.” I open my mouth to object.

“Hey! You could have stopped it but instead you decided to—” He looks at his watch and cuts me off.

“It’s late. You need to get home. Let me walk you, lest you run into some other… unsavory circumstance.” He begins to walk away as I struggle to speak.

He turns back around and looks me up and down. “Are you coming, or are you going to stand outside my house gawking like a chicken all night?” I furrow my brow and shoot him a look, but then catch up as he begins to walk towards my house. We walk in a strained silence for a few minutes before he speaks up again.

“I had wanted to talk to you tonight, after I had heard you in the bar earlier.”

“Is that why you got distracted,” I ask, “and didn't stop Albert and Sonia?”

“No,” he quickly says, but then pauses. “Yes. Why were you talking about Ginger?” He stops now, and I stop with him, in front of my door.

“Oh.” I look up at him. “Well, I had met her earlier today, I hadn’t realized she was there, I hadn’t met her yet—” He interrupts me.

“I don’t want you to see her again.” His face is cool, but I can sense he feels more strongly about it than he’s letting on.

“What?”

“You. I don’t want you to see her. How hard is that to understand?” 

“That makes no sense. Ginger invited me back, it would be rude to just… not show up again now.”

“I don’t think I’m being clear.” He steps towards me, his body practically against mine, and I almost have to look straight up to meet his gaze. 

“No, maybe I’m not being clear.” I move closer to him, and he takes a step back. “Ginger is lonely, I don’t know why exactly she hasn’t made any friends in town, but it’s clear she needs one, and she seems like a nice girl and I’d like to get to know her. Who are you to stop me? Why don’t you want your sister to be happy?” Gust furrows his brow, and I immediately regret what I said. He moves towards me once again, and this time our bodies do touch as I’m backed up against the door. He places a hand against the door next to my head and leans in.

“Do you think I’m some kind of monster?” His voice raises in volume as he gets angry. “Of course I want her happy, but I know what’ll make her happy, and it’s not,” he says, poking his other hands sharply into my shoulder, “you! I don’t need to watch as yet another half-witted—” 

Poke.

“--ignorant but well-meaning—”

Poke. 

“-- clueless idiot befriends Ginger, raises her hopes, only to grow bored of her after a month and never reach out to her again.” His face is contorted with rage. “I don’t need to watch my sister go through yet another heartbreak as yet another person gets turned off by her illness and leaves her—” his voice hitches, and I watch as a tear rolls down his face. He quickly wipes it away and steps back, freeing me from a pin against my door. He runs a hand through his hair and tries to compose himself. I realize that he’s just protective of his sister, but I’m too angry at this point to drop it.

“Is that what you think of me? That I’m some absolute buffoon who’s coming in to wreck her life?” I step towards him, leaning close into him. “Listen to me, and hear me clearly. You’re—” 

I poke his shoulder hard this time. 

“--not my boss. You don’t even know me” I say, my face inches from his, “You think I’m scared by her illness? You--" 

Poke.

"--don’t know me!  I had to watch my mother die, I was the only person with her when it happened. I know how people leave, how her friends slowly stopped dropping off food for us, how fewer people came to visit or hold her hand.” His face is set and cold as he stares into my eyes, our noses practically touching as I yell at him. “I know people have left her, I watched it happen to my mom, but how DARE you just assume I would do the same.” 

We lock eyes, only the pale moon above lighting our faces. I can feel how tightly clenched my jaw is, and the steely determination in his eye, neither of us wanting to lose the stare-off. 

“You don’t know me,” I repeat, taking a step back, but not breaking eye contact. 

Before I can register his movement, he’s moved himself closer again and pulls my face up to his once again, his hand cupping my cheek. I think for a brief second that he’s going to kiss me as he moves closer in, but he stops just before our noses touch once again, freezing. We breathe heavily for a few seconds before he drops my face and turns around, beginning to walk towards the gate of my yard. As he opens the gate, he stops, and looks back halfway over his shoulder.

“If you hurt her,” he says, his voice now clear and strong, “I will personally ensure you find no peace during the rest of your days here in Portia. Do you understand?” He doesn’t wait for a response, and lets the gate swing violently shut behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! The chapter next week will probably be shorter (as mentioned at the end of the last chapter, had some family things), but if I do finish a longer chapter I might publish that one as well! Then you'd get two, lucky ducks. Have a great week!


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the short chapter-- not much to the main plot, but I think I'd like to throw some in to show how Licity interacts with the rest of the town. Like, she has a life outside of romance, right? We're adding DIMENSION baby!

####  Chapter Five

I throw Alberts arm up against the wall beside him, pinning it there. His devious smile matches my own as our bodies touch. The wild look in his eyes suggests he knows that what we’re doing shouldn’t be happening, but he doesn’t care, and neither do I. I lean in closer to his face, smiling wide.

“Are you sure about this?”

“Darling, I’ve never wanted anything more in my life.” I grin even wider, loving that he’s using a familiar pet name. 

Deciding that my one room hovel was no longer adequate, I asked Gust and Albert to help expand my home, giving me an extra room and more space for a proper bed, kitchen, bathroom, etc. 

Gust remained cold. No matter how I acted towards him, he looked upon me with indifference, acting as if we had never spent that night outside of his house together. He acted almost if he was meeting me for the first time, even though we had met well before that night. 

It was amazing though, watching him work. The way his face lit up when he talked about the renovation was like magic, how determined he was walking me around the outside of the house pointing out changes was inspiring. It was obvious that he was passionate about his work, revealing a softer side to him than that night after the bar where he yelled at me. He didn’t know, but I went into my house and cried for hours, shook entirely through. I hadn’t stopped seeing Ginger, though.

Albert, on the other hand, was much more of a flirt. I was nervous to have him come over, considering I had accidentally seen him during an indecent moment, but after getting to know him better I began to realize why Sonia liked him so much. He seemed like a schmoozer to me before, but I now realize what an absolute dork he is inside. His whole persona was nothing but an act, the clothes, his strange pick-up lines, they were all fake. An absolute goober of a man, I found myself becoming much closer to him.

I noticed as he and I became more familiar over the course of the renovation that Sonia almost seemed to become jealous, though she tried to play it off. It was just little comments, asking about how I liked him or how long the renovation was supposed to take. Albert played into her jealousy, too, making extra effort to talk to me in front of her, or try to steal me away if I stopped outside of the Round Table to discuss the renovation. Antoine and Emily made jokes about our new friendship, but I always tried to assure Sonia that Albert truly only had eyes for her.

And he really truly did. What I saw in the park was truly disgusting and I knew I would never be able to scrub the images from my mind, but it was obvious how much he truly cared for her. It almost made me sad, in a way, that I had no one in Portia who thought of me like that. I could admit to myself that I had the tiniest crush on Aadit, or knew that I had felt something that night with Gust, but I was sure that neither of them felt the same way about me. The way that he talked to me about Sonia as we built planks or put up walls together was adorable, and made my heart swell with happiness for my friend. My friend, who, if she saw the two of us now might have dropped dead.

I give Albert one final wink, and swing up my other hand, promptly pushing the nail gun into the wall over the fabric of his shirt, just a tad above his actual arm, and pull the trigger. The loud THUNK of the gun makes us both jump, but I promptly burst out laughing and shake my head. Albert has a shit eating grin, face full of joy.

“Are you sure this is okay? I know you love this shirt.” Albert nods.

“I have a billion of them. I just wanna know if it’ll hold me up! Gust won’t ever try this with me, I just wanna know! Keep going.” I nod and pull the trigger again, and again, working my way down his sleeve and back under his arm. 

I move my chair over so that the corner of it is on the corner of the chair Albert is standing on. I work my way around his other arm while he tries not to shake too hard from giggling then stand up to look him in the eye again.

“Your pants, too?” I hold the gun up next to me.

“But of course, beautiful! How else am I supposed to stay up?” I bat my eyelashes and put a hand under my chin like I’m flattered, then step off my chair and work around the outside of his pant leg, trying to make sure I give enough staple support.

“Hey, Licity?” I look up at him.

“Yeah?”

“Be careful with the goods down there. I have a reputation to uphold.” I roll my eyes and go back to stapling. 

“Somehow I doubt that,” I say under my breath. Albert laughs, bright and cheery above me, but then lets out a small noise.

I hear the sound of papers dropping to the floor and rolling as I get the final staple in on Albert’s pants. I whip around and see none other than Gust standing in the open doorframe, his hands down at his sides as his papers settle on the ground below him.

“What is— What do you two think you’re doing?” His eyes are wide, like he doesn’t know how to process what he’s seeing. His lips are a thin line, pressed together from stress. 

Without breaking eye contact with Gust, I kick the chair out from underneath Albert, who sucks in sharply as I do. Thankfully, he holds, his body pinned to the wall. 

“Ta-da?” Albert lets out a weak smile and tries to do jazz hands to the best of his limited movement abilities. Gust clasps his hands together and sticks the pointer fingers in front of his mouth, and tilts his head upwards. After what feels like the longest five seconds of my life, he sighs and looks back down at the two of us.

“You’re idiots and I hate you both.” 

“Hey!” I start, while Albert tries to yell over me.

“It's so funny! I’m stuck to the wall! I’ve been nailed to the wall! Licity nailed me against the wall!” I smack his leg, hard. “Ouch!” I point a crooked finger up at him.

“Hey, watch it buddy.” He scrunches up his face at me as I turn back to Gust and watch him run his hand through his long, blonde hair and sigh deeply, then look back down at the ground. He shakes slightly, and it takes me a second to realize he’s trying to hide laughter. Feeling bold, I speak up.

“Were those documents for me? I know you had asked me to look over some ideas for the roof.” Gust looks back up at me, his lips a faint smile.

“They were,” he says, once again in a rather serious and monotone voice. “I was hoping to make a decision today, preventing me from having to come down here anymore than I already am.” His eyes flicker to Albert on the walls and he flattens his lips once again, but when he looks back at me I can see the littlest bit of light in his eyes. 

“There’s room on my worktable, outside. We could lay them out there?” He smirks, faintly, but I still notice it as I study his face. He bends over and picks up a few scrolled up pieces of paper.

“That sounds like a wonderful idea. Shall we?” I begin to walk towards him, trying to contain my smile to his own. Albert behind me lets out a little yelp.

“You’re just joking, right? You’re not just going to leave me here?” Gust rolls his eyes and extends his arm to me, which I slip my own through. It’s surprisingly strong and sturdy for someone who spends most of the day drawing. We take a few steps into the night air.

“Gust? Licity? Hello? Guys? GUYS?” 


	6. Chapter Six

I wake up in my bed, covered in sweat. I wipe my forehead and sit up, brushing any of the remaining blankets off of myself. I had wanted badly to patch all the holes in the walls of my home, but hadn’t thought that the slight breeze through was the only thing keeping the house a little cool. I make a mental note to ask the research center to create a cooling system for the home and get out of bed. 

Once out, I hop into the shower and begin to get ready for the day. Creating the pipe and sprinkler system for the tree farm wasn’t incredibly hard, but actually crafting the materials was time consuming. I mostly ran other smaller errands and had machines working in the background all day. But now that all the parts were ready, I was installing the system as quickly as I could. I hadn’t anticipated Portia being quite so hot though. Barnarock’s summer temps would maybe get into the 80 degree range at most, but Portia was much hotter and much more humid. Putting the machinery and pipes in was painful in the heat, but it had to be done. 

I pull my hair up into a ponytail, and pick the lightest clothing I can that would still be suitable to work in, an incredibly thin cotton top and jeans, the latter of which almost make me want to cry when I put them on. Sighing, I head outside to pack up the last of what I need to bring to the tree farm and begin to head out. Thankfully I had had the sense to bring most of the supplies over last night, so that I wouldn’t have to make multiple runs back and forth in the heat.

When I get to the tree farm, I’m relieved to find the shade of the trees provides some respite from the heat. The eldest of the Hulu brothers, Dawa, waddles up to greet me as I set the last of my tools down.

“Licity! Glad to see ya. Means we’re finally getting the sprinklers, huh?” I smile and nod, used to his rambling at this point. We met occasionally at the Round Table to discuss plans for the sprinkler system, but often more times than not Dawa would ramble on for the whole meeting about nothing in particular. Aadit would be there as well, but sat mostly in contemplative silence, more or less just taking the meeting in. I wanted to include him, but would get flustered when I tried to talk to him.

“Yeah, I’m glad to finally get this in and get the tree farm opened. I’m sure the trees need the water in all this heat.” Dawa nods.

“Oh man, you got no idea. They’ll drink that right up. Oh, Aadit! Good morning Mr. Sunshine, ready to put these in?” 

I look up to the house behind Dawa, where Aadit stands in the doorframe. I’ve seen him at least a dozen times at this point, but I’m always taken aback by his looks. His warm, brown eyes are framed by pieces of jet black hair fallen down from his half up hair, his tanned skin already showing a thin sheen of sweat. I notice he still has a sweater on as he bounds down the stairs, coming to a stop besides Dawa with a small smile towards me. 

“Aadit!” I say as I use the sweater as an excuse to reach out and touch his arm. I notice he flinches just a second before I touch him. “You’ll sweat to death in this. Are you sure you don’t want to wear something… more breathable?” He nods. Dawa laughs. 

“Aadit doesn’t really—” 

“I’ll be fine. Thanks for your concern, though.” Aadit interrupts Dawa, who is shocked that he’s speaking. He takes a step back, and my arm falls. He points at some pipes laid out by the table. “Would you like me to bring these back to the lake?”  
“Oh, sure. Thank you.” Aadit picks up a pipe and nods in my direction before walking off. I hate myself for wanting to stand and watch him walk away.

“Is there anything I can do, Licity?” I turn back to Dawa.

“Oh, yeah! If you want. I think I can handle putting the machines together, they’re pretty much ready to go but they just have to be reassembled. We’ve got most of the pipes in, so thats good. You wanted the timer though, right?” Dawa nods. “If you are able to, I have a chip with the timing commands, you can put it into the water wheel?”

“Sounds easy enough!” Dawa takes the chip and begins to head towards the wheel before stopping and turning back around to face me. “Oh, I don’t know how long you’ll be here, but I gotta leave around 4 to go on a fishing trip with my brothers, so I’ll probably be gone before you leave. I can pay you tomorrow or—” 

“Oh! That’s fine. I’ll catch ya later. It’s not like you won’t pay me, I mean I know where you live,” I say with a smile, waving my hammer in my hand, “and I’m the one with all the heavy tools.” I wink and Dawa laughs before toddling off.

I spend hours putting together the water pump and installing the last of the pipes. My ponytail worked its way into a bun as the day dragged on, as even the trees couldn’t stop the heat. Aadit, a diligent helper, would check in every hour to see if I could use any help, and while I would have loved his company I felt too nervous to say so. Eventually, I put the pump together, and headed back towards the front to collect my tool kit.

As I begin to make my way up, I notice Aadit ahead of me, looking closely at one of the sprinkler heads raised in the air, almost a foot above my height but just barely above the top of his head. He seems so focused in on the head, studying it as he circles it slowly. I stand close to a tree so as to not be seen as I watch him, but quickly realize how ludacris I’d look if he caught me in my weird attempt to hide.

Aadit stops circling, then wipes the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand and tugs at his sweater, trying to fan air through. I continue my walk towards him, drawn in to him like he’s some kind of magnet. 

“Checking out the sprinkler?” He turns to me, nodding slightly. I can’t read his stoic face as he turns to look at it again.

“Will it turn on by itself?” 

“Yes. I made a couple of programming chips, so in the summer it should run for an hour-ish every twelve hours, at six in the morning and six at night.” I check my watch. “It should actually hopefully turn on soon, if everything works right. I thought I might stay to check it out, you could… watch with me.” He nods.

“We might want to step back a bit from the head, then.” He turns to walk from the sprinkler, and I jog to catch up. Now about 20 feet back, we stand side by side in silence and stare at the still head. I try to look up at him without turning my head, but I think he catches me as he speaks up. 

“How has Portia been?” My face flushes even brighter now, both from heat and embarrassment.

“Oh, it’s been… good. Well. I’m doing good.” He nods, and I wish a tree would fall and kill me. What is it about Aadit that ties my tongue up so?

“That’s good. Hopefully you’re adjusting well to the heat. I know Barnarock is probably cooler.” I perk up at the mention of my homeland.

“Have you been there? Barnarok?”

“Yes, but it was brief.” I wait for more to come, but after a moment of silence I turn back towards the still motionless sprinkler.

“Your sweater, if you want, you don’t have to wear it, you could just… take it off.” He looks down at me for a moment.

“Are you trying to see me shirtless?” At this moment I crave death more than ever before.

“NO! No, not at all.” He’s smiling widely, but I’m too flustered to stop. “I don’t— I didn’t mean, I don’t want to be improper I just saw you fidgeting with it and thought if you were hot you didn’t have to keep it on for my sake, like I won’t be all ‘ooh I’m a lady how offensive’ ya know?” I wish I could stop rambling as he lets out a quiet laugh.

“It’s alright, it’s alright,” he says, putting a large hand on my shoulder. “I was only kidding. I knew what you meant.” He looks back at the sprinkler, but he’s still smiling. “I prefer to keep it on, anyways.” I nod.

By some saving grace, namely the code chip I had Dawa put in the water wheel, the sprinkler head turns on exactly when it’s supposed to (and when I needed it most), spraying water over the surrounding area. I hear the other sprinklers kick on, and smile and jump.

“Oh, yes! It works!” Aadit nods.

“Did you have any doubt it would?” He looks back at me, the smile still on his lips.

“Honestly?” I meet his gaze. “Yes, one-hundred percent, I figured something would have to go wrong.” He lets out a deep laugh, the loudest I’ve ever heard from him. I let out a giggle too. Turning back towards the sprinklers, I hope from foot to foot. “Alrighty then.” 

“Alright?”

“Oh, I’m heading in.” Aadit cocks an eyebrow. “Listen, it’s hot as all heck out, and right now, that sprinkler water is looking pretty good.” He lets out a small laugh and nods again.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” I hold out my hand to him.

“You in?” He studies my face for a moment, the smile dropping, but ultimately reaches out and takes my outstretched limb, his hand completely enveloping mine.

“Might as well.” A smile stretches across my face as we take off, running into the cool spray of the sprinklers.

We run around like children under the sprinklers, laughing and feeling the cool water against our skin like children. I keep looking over to Aadit, admiring the pure joy on his face. We run in circles around the raised sprinkler, every once in a while using each other’s hands to spin off each other and change directions, skipping like idiots. Everytime he touches me I can’t help but feel my heart skip a beat, and wonder if he feels the same way.

As we both start to slow down I make my way back towards him, still under the sprinkler head, his eyes closed as he lets the water rush over him. Moving too quickly though, I slip on mud and begin to fall towards him, but before I can even fully register the fall he’s scooped me in his arms, pulling me into himt, my arms pushed in front of me resting on his chest. 

“Nice catch,” I giggle, and he lets out a small laugh as well, but doesn’t let go. Our chests heave as we both smile and stare at each other. He doesn’t let go. Slowly, the smiles begin to fade on both of our faces as we stare at each other, breathing heavily from running in the water.

I can’t bring myself to look away from his eyes, or studying the slight bend of his nose, or noticing how perfect his lips seem, even with a little scar at the corner. He studies my face as well, and I wish I could read his mind. I slowly move one of my hands up from being pushed against his chest, stopping for half a second at the top of his shoulder, but then continue to move it up his neck, then pushing a piece of wet hair stuck against his cheek back behind his ear, and leave my hand to rest there. 

We only stare for a few seconds more before he, slowly at first but then picking up speed, brings his face down to mine, squeezing me even closer as our lips part to connect perfectly. Water from the sprinklers is still streaming down both of our faces as he kisses me harder while I try to push up onto my tiptoes to reach him easier and get even closer. I throw both my arms now over his shoulders now, desperately trying to connect further with him, hungry for his taste even as he kisses me.

As we finally break from the kiss, he keeps his face close to mine, kissing my cheek and my ear in turn as he tries to stand back up to his full height. We don’t break eye contact for a second once he’s standing tall again, but I notice just the tiniest flicker of his eyes further downward before coming back to my face.

He suddenly pushes back from me, freeing himself from my arms wrapped around his shoulders and takes a few steps back, turning around to face away from me as he does so. I stare at his back, wondering what I’ve done wrong before looking down at myself and realizing what made him step back.

My light, white, cotton shirt was completely soaked through from the sprinkler water, and I had neglected to put on a bra today, unwilling this morning to wrap the tight contraption around my sweaty, slightly bloated body. My breasts are on full display, my nipples hard and pink like targets poking through. I bring my arms up quickly to cover my chest.

“Oh, oh my god, I’m so sorry.” 

“No, I’m— I’m sorry.” He turns his head to the side to look at me from the corner of his eye but quickly turns it back away from me.

“I should go, it’s late. I’m sorry, I—” I run towards the entrance of the tree farm arms still covering my chest, thankful that the water from the sprinkler masks the tears on my face. 

Once home, I finally drop my arms from my chest. I move to my mirror, and groan once I see how exposed I truly was. The white fabric, now sheer, clung to my breast, every curve and bump on display for Aadit. I rub my hand down my now red face, completely and utterly embarrassed. 

I kick the corner of my bed lightly. The kiss was probably nothing but a moment of passion, of weakness, and would never happen again thanks to my brazen, breasty display. Aadit is a gentleman, I tell myself, and pushed back so I would have the chance to cover myself. He probably thinks I’m an idiot. 

I look back in the mirror at my partially exposed body, licking my lips, wishing that Aadit was still kissing me. I wonder, just for a second, if Aadit turned around so quickly because… he liked what he saw, a lot? But I banish the thought from my mind and strip out of my soaked clothes, ready to lay in bed for the rest of my life. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> teehee things are HEATIN UP I told y'all I'd start on that. Thanks for reading, and have a Happy New Year!


	7. Chapter Seven

Almost the whole town seems to crowd around the makeshift boxing ring for the summer’s martial arts tournament as I walk from my workshop to the event, but a shock of red hair standing from the archway of the town's walls catches my eyes. I wave excitedly at Ginger; we’ve been meeting at least once a week at her house since our first meeting, and I’ve grown to think of her as one of my closest friends, maybe even above Antoine, Sonia, and Emily. Talking to Ginger is just easier, it’s like there’s no other social expectations or concerns, I can just truly be myself around her.

“Hey!” I finally bound up to Ginger, giving her a gentle quick hug. Gust stands besides her in the arch and gives me a cold look. We haven’t talked too much since that night, besides my home renovation plans, but I like to think he might be warming up to me, as I haven’t left Ginger yet.

“Hello! How are you doing?” Ginger reaches out to grab my shoulder, giving it a faint squeeze.

“It’s going well! I’m just glad that it’s cooling down now, ya know?” She nods and delicately brushes a piece of hair behind her ear. 

“You know that’s not what I’m talking about.” Her face is serious, and while Gust isn’t looking at us, I see his eyebrow cock as he stares out towards the crowd around the ring.

“Hey, dude,” I say, lowering my voice. Ginger leans in closer to me.

“You told me you’d come after you know what, and it’s been two days, missy.” I had told Ginger about the sprinkler system I was putting in at the tree farm, and while I was denying any feelings towards Aadit to my other friends, I had been more candid with Ginger. 

She narrows her eyes. “Something happened, didn’t it?”

“No!” I say as I step back, with a little snort. She looks me up and down before breaking into a big smile.

“Oh, you’re a big liar! Something happened!” She claps her hands together, and as she does Gust finally looks back down towards the two of us.

“Licity, what trouble did you get into?” His face is practically expressionless as he stares blankly at me, but I feel like he wants to know, to find a reason to be able to judge me, or something. 

“Nothing!” Ginger and I say the word at the same time, then giggle as Gust rolls his eyes and looks back towards the fight that's happening between Arlo and Oaks. 

“You’re going to have to come over you know, maybe tomorrow?” Ginger looks expectantly at me.

“Fine. But it’s not exciting, so don’t get your hopes up.” Ginger bites her lips and smiles, fully aware of my lie. I turn around to watch the fight as well, and see Oaks struggle to keep up with the flurry of blows and kicks Arlo is sending his way. Ginger winces after what appears to be an especially painful punch.

“This festival is always my least favorite. People just… fight, and there’s not even a fun potluck afterwards,” Ginger says. I nod.

“Yeah, this one isn’t gonna make my list of favorites for the year.” I grimace and flinch as Oaks lets out a roar and charges forward. 

“It’s not about the fighting,” Gust says, staring straight ahead. “The martial arts festival is about displaying the vitality and skill of town. It’s not meant as some kind of…” He waves his hand in a small circle. “... show of force, per se, but rather a friendly competition.” He nudges my arm with his elbow, and then points at the ring. I hadn’t been aware of how close we were standing until now. 

“See? Oaks and Arlo are both smiling. They wouldn’t be doing this if it hurt. It’s on a volunteer basis, and the Civil Corps won’t pair you up with anyone you couldn’t handle.” Oaks throws both hands in the air and Arlo pumps a fist in the air. They shake hands, wide smiles on both their faces. 

“Oh, I think I get it,” I say. After a moment, I feel a smile on my lips, almost spoiling my joke. “So if you were to sign up, they’d pair you with Toby, right? Like is it based on skill or weight class, because I think that fits both.” 

Ginger lets out a small giggle and covers her mouth with her hand, and Gust scrunches his face and sticks out his tongue at me. He returns his gaze to the ring, where the next match is being set up. He’s trying to play it cool, but I can see a slight smile. 

Paulie steps up into the ring, and flexes for the town who cheers and laughs. After a minute, Mars steps up into the ring and raises a fist in the air, drawing more cheers from the crowd. I grimace.

“Oof, I’d hate to be against Paulie.” Gust tucks a piece of hair behind his ear and rolls his eyes.

“Mars will win.”

“Really? You think?” Ginger purses her lips and nods while Gust gives me a side eye. 

“He always does.” I nod, and look at the two men up in the ring. Paulie towers over Mars, and has both youth and an obscene amount of muscles on his side, but Mars must have something else going for him. Based on my limited interactions with Paulie, I’m assuming Mars has intelligence on his side. 

“Oh, Liss, look over there.” Ginger points behind me, and I turn to follow her hand. Dawa is walking up towards the ring excitedly, while Aadit follows at a leisurely pace behind him. Dawa tries to push his way through the crowd, but Aadit slows down when he reaches the crowd, hanging back a bit. I whip back around, my cheeks red from embarrassment. 

I had been unable to stop thinking about the kiss we shared, that evening at the tree farm. I found myself often in the past three weeks zoning out, thinking about how his lips felt against mine, how he felt pressed up against my body, how he tasted. I wanted to kick myself for breaking the kiss, for not wearing a bra and accidentally exposing myself like that. I’m sure he thinks so ill of me.

“You should go over there,” Ginger whispers. She tilts her head towards Aadit, knocking me out of my trance.

“What? No,” I hiss back. “I can’t just strut up like nothing happened.”

“So something DID happen!” My face flushes once again and I look down. Ginger caught me. 

“Hmm?” Gust looks back towards the two of us, and sees Aadit off in the edge of the crowd. “Oh. Oh,” he says, now with a corner of his mouth upturned. “I see, Licity has a little crush on the tree farmer. How quaint.”

“I do not! We just worked together while I put in the sprinkler system there.” 

“Really?” Gust looks down at me, his nose turned upwards. “Then it should be no problem for you to talk to him.” Ginger smiles, and I bite my lip.

“Maybe later?” Gust rolls his eyes again, but now Ginger is the one with the mischievous smile. 

“Gust, I think I’m overheating a little. Do you mind taking me home?” Gust instinctively raises a hand to place on Ginger’s forehead, but slowly lowers it when he catches onto her game.

“It is quite warm out, and I’m sure you’re tired. Let’s take you home.” The resemblance I suddenly see between the two siblings is terrifying, the evil glint in their eyes is almost identical.

“I’m so sorry Liss, I’m just feeling ill.” Ginger pouts in an over dramatic way, her bottom lip sticking out. “I’ll see you later though, do have fun at the festival.” She loops her arm through Gust’s, who flicks his hair back over his shoulder, gives me a wink and turns around with his sister to lead her away. 

“No, no!” I hiss. “Not cool! Friendship over! You’ll never see me again!” Ginger turns and winks at me over her shoulder, before leaning into her brother as he leads her away. I curse under my breath and turn back to the crowd. I notice Aadit looking at me out of the corner of his eye, but just as our eyes meet he turns back around. With no one else to talk to, I shuffle towards the crowd around the ring.

At this point, Paulie and Mars were deep into the fight, and it appeared Mars was handily deflecting all of Paulie’s blows. Mars seemed to be having a lot more fun as well, jumping quickly around the ring. At this point, Paulie had taken his shirt off, revealing his well sculpted muscles and deep, silvery crescent scars on his chest, all under a layer of quite visible sweat. 

I end up on the edge of the crowd, unfortunately only a few feet apart from Aadit, but to my surprise he closes the gap over the course of a minute, slowly shuffling towards me. I nod at him when he stands next to me, and look back up at the ring.

“Hey.” His deep voice surprises me, almost inaudible over the cheering of the crowd as Mars is declared the victor of the round.

“Hi.” I look back up at him with a quick smile, but then bite at my lip and look away. I don’t know what to say, but I can feel the words bubbling out from inside of me like some kind of fountain. “You know, I’m really sorry—” 

“I wanted to apologize— oh. Sorry, you”

“No! Please.” We stare at each other, before he smiles at me. I feel like I’m melting from the warmth of his eyes.

“Licity, I’m sorry for what happened. It wasn’t… I didn’t want it to scare you or upset you at all.” He looks back up towards the ring, where Sam is taunting Merlin to join her in the ring.

“No, really I should be the one apologizing, I shouldn’t have done that. It was unprofessional, I didn’t think, or, or mean for, um.” He reaches out and gives my hand a small squeeze and lets go, but still doesn’t look right at me. I wish his hands were in my hair.

“I know.” He’s silent for a minute as we watch Merlin cave and step up into the ring. “I just… I’m sorry it was weird. I don’t want it to be weird. You’re a nice person, and I just… I hope this doesn’t change anything.” I bite my lip and look down for a second. He regrets it.

“Yeah! I understand. I’m glad, I didn’t want it to be weird either.” I smile and nod at him, but quickly turn back to the now fight between Sam and Merlin. We stand in silence for a few minutes watching the two fight, our bodies so close our hands are practically touching. 

“You’d probably do good up there.”

“Hmm?” Aadit looks down at me, confused.

“In this weird, fighting festival, I mean. You know with all your…” I look him up and down. “... Tree muscles.” He laughs, a deep and hearty laugh, unlike anything I’ve heard from him before.

“Tree muscles, no…” He trails off, barely audible. “That’s, that’s a good one, but I’m not much a fighter.” He looks down at me, this time showing teeth. I think about how his lips look parted like that, how much I wish they were touching mine.

“Oh, no, it’s not like real fighting I guess. That’s what Gust told me at least.” I scratch the back of my head.

“No, I know, it’s just…” His eyes look much more distance now, and I stare at the little wrinkles forming on his brow. He shakes himself out of it. “As a child, you know, I grew up towards the border. It… wasn’t very nice to say the least. I had to fight to stay alive, metaphorically speaking, uhm, but I did some things that I would say I am not proud of?” He looks down at me, biting his lip. “I don’t know, I just promised myself I’d never fight again I guess, and I know this is friendly, but I don’t think I could do it still, you know?” 

He looks back up towards the ring, eyes glazed over. I reach out and gently squeeze his hand this time. He looks down at me, and I just smile and nod letting go of his hand.

We watch the rest of the fight in silence, standing right next to each other, our pinkies ever so softly slightly grazing each other as we shift our stances occasionally. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi hehe just a warning that next week's chapter is LONG and it is STEAMY. Happy coup day :'-)


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! This week's chapter gets steamy, but I wanted to make sure to CW before just in case you want a heads up to avoid anything triggering. So, CW: alcohol, sexual acts. 
> 
> That's it.

“Stop it! No, we’re going to go do shots.” Sonia flips her hair over her shoulder, and Antoine nods. “It’s like, the final hurrah of summer. Don’t you wanna go out with a bang?” 

The four of us, Antoine, Emily, Sonia, and I are all leaning against the boxing ring, shielding our eyes from the setting sun. After the martial arts festival we stayed back to chat for a few minutes, which had suddenly turned into hours. 

“Eh, I don’t know. I mean, I’ve got to start working on that stupid lift tomorrow—” Antoine pouts.  
“You always have stuff to work on! That’s like, your job or whatever.” His snide comment draws a little laugh out of me.

“It’s not like you have to get blackout, yeah? Like, leave that for the professionals,” Sonia says, pointing at herself. 

“Well… Em, what do you think?” The three of us turn to Emily, who’s been picking dirt from her nails since we brought up going to the Round Table. She purses her lips, and takes an overexaggerated hard look at each of us. Sonia pretends to throw back a shot when Emily looks at her, and when she looks at me I point back to my workshop. 

“Eh, a shot or five won’t hurt anything.” Antoine pumps his fist in the air as Sonia cheers. I throw my hands in the air.

“Oh no,” I say, but with a big smile, “I have to get drunk with my friends tonight? How terrible!” Sonia giggles and links her arms through both mine and Emily’s. 

“Onward!” she declares, taking a large step and dragging Emily and I forward with her. “To get shit-faced on tequila and make mistakes!” I laugh and lean into her, happy that I’ve found such great friends so quickly after moving to Portia.

Antoine runs ahead to open the door to the bar as we approach it, dramatically bowing as he waves us through. Inside, the Round Table is packed, with groups and pairs scattered throughout the restaurant talking and playing games. The most noticeable group sits at the restaurant’s namesake in the center, the entire Hulu family. I notice quickly that Aadit is sitting with them, a wide smile on his face as he tries to talk over some of the brothers, his face red from his buzz. 

Not a second after I realize that I’m staring at him, Emily drags me off to our table in the corner. I turn my head to see Sonia with her hand on her popped out hip, pretending to be upset with Albert and Gust. 

“Guys, this is our spot! You know it’s like, pretty much reserved for our group.” She makes a sweeping gesture towards the four of us. Gust makes a sweeping gesture at the drinks in front of him and Albert, his face unreadable.

“Well right now, the table is reserved for our dri— Ow!” Gust jumps and looks at Albert, who sits across the table from him. Albert is already climbing out of his seat.

“Why don’t you all join us? We can share the table.” He takes Sonia’s hand and guides her to the chair next to his. Gust looks at me and rolls his eyes, and I pretend to pick at my lip to cover a smile. 

I end up having to sit next to Gust, though, and throw him a dirty look when he tries to hand me a menu.

“A thank you would suffice, you know.” He drops the menu in front of me, to punctuate his point. 

“How's Ginger doing? Is she feeling better?” The corner of his lip curls up as I ask him the question, and instead of answering he takes a long sip from the beer in front of him and turns to view the frenzied conversation between Emily and Antoine. After a moment though, he tilts his head slightly back towards me and glances at me from the corner of his eye.

“Did you talk to tree boy? Was it everything you hoped for and more?” It’s my turn to roll my eyes, and he smiles coyly as he turns his head fully towards me. “Strike a nerve?”

“No! No.” I run a hand through my hair. “I don’t even know where Ginger got the idea from. I think she reads that stupid romance book of hers too much.” Gust nods slowly but then leans in closer to me, close enough I can practically feel his breath on my face.

“So it wouldn’t matter if I told you he was looking over here, would it?” Without thinking, I whip my head around. For a split second Aadit and I make eye contact before he turns to join in singing some kind of shanty with the Hulu brothers, his face redder now than when I first saw him coming in. I turn back to look at Gust, who’s now leaning far back in his chair and laughing. I can’t help but giggle at the sound of his infectious laughter, a noise that I hadn’t heard yet before. I lightly smack his arm with the back of my hand. 

“I don’t wanna hear it.” He keeps laughing as the rest of the group turns their attention to us.

“What are you two giggling about?” Antoine leans forward and rests his face in his propped up hands. “Please do share with the class.” I open my mouth to speak but Gust interrupts before I can get a word out. 

“Licity just made a snide remark that caught me off guard.” He looks down quickly at me before continuing. “I didn’t expect her to have the brain capacity to be able to be so witty, that’s all.” I smack him again as Emily and Antoine laugh. Sonia winks at me.

“Lissy’s got some fire in her, you’d be surprised. Speaking of which,” she says, placing both hands flat on the table, “I think it’s time for some shots?” I clasp my hands together.

“Yes, please.” 

*******************************************************************

After a few hours and far too much alcohol later, Django finally kicks those of us who are remaining out of the bar, which at this point is only the group I was with and the now very loud, very drunk Hulu brothers. We all stumble out into the still warm air, and begin to slur through our goodbyes. I give Sonia and Antoine a hug, and turn to Emily. 

“You ready to head back?” She purses her lips and shakes her head. 

“I think I’m actually going to stay with Sonia tonight. Gran doesn’t like it very much when I come home like… this so late.” I smile and nod, and give her a hug as well. I notice Aadit, turned towards our group as the Hulu brothers begin to go their separate ways.

“Okay! I’ll see you tomorrow then. I guess I’ll head back,” I say, and attempt to take a step backwards. My foot catches on the uneven cobblestone and I fall backwards, landing flat on my ass. For a second our group is silent, before bursting out into laughter. Aadit, taking stock of the scene, takes a few steps forward and offers a hand out to me.

“Need a hand?” I nod, and he pulls me up towards him. I notice Gust bristle at the interaction, but brush it off. When I hop up, Aadit, probably quite like me, smells of alcohol, but I can still smell his musky pine scent. I giggle a little, but catch myself. I’ve got to play it cool.

“Uh, I’m gonna go for real this time.”

“Would you… like me to walk you home?” Aadit tilts his head sideways as he asks the question. “It’s late, and,” he smiles slightly, “you might need the help.” I feel my face blush. Emily and Sonia give each other a brief look, and I know I’ve made my crush obvious to them in that moment, and flush harder.

“That won’t be necessary. I’ll walk Licity home.” Before I can answer Aadit, Gust speaks up, and to my shock, puts an arm around my shoulder. It’s my turn now to throw a look at Emily and Sonia, who look just as confused as I do. 

“Oh, I thought I’d offer, it’s on my way.” Aadit looks dejected, and I decide to chime in. I shrug Gust’s hand off my shoulder.

“Gust, no I’m fine. I’ll go with Aadit, I’m completely out of your way.” Gust frowns slightly, but then takes a step away.

“Very well. I’ll see you later then.” Antoine moves rapidly towards Gust and wraps his arms around Gust’s midsection. 

“Walk me home! I’m fragile and drunk too!” Albert lets out a hearty laugh as the rest of us girls giggle, but Aadit stares at the pair confused. Gust shoves Antoine off of him.

“Don’t touch me.” He rolls his eyes, but then tilts his head away and starts walking. Antoine skips behind him. 

“I’ll see you guys all later, then.” I wave at the group, and then look up at Aadit. “Ready?” He nods, and we turn and leave the group behind us.

As we walk, our fingers graze against each other, almost as if we were to hold each other’s hands but I ignore it, hoping Aadit does the same. Once out of the town’s gate, he turns and looks at me as we walk.

“Not to, um, pry, but… uh, you and… Gust?” I stop walking immediately, and Aadit turns to look at me, concern is his eyes.

“No! God no, it’s just—” I shake my head and keep walking, Aadit slowly strolling next to me. I’m trying to walk as slow as possible to extend our time together. “--I’m quite good friends with Ginger, Gust’s little sister, and I think because when he thinks of me he thinks of his sister, he just gets protective, you know? Kinda like I’m in that younger sister role as well. Even though I think we’re the same, uh, age.” Aadit nods and looks ahead.

“That makes sense, I suppose.” We walk in silence for a moment, before we arrive at my door. Though I tried to stretch it, the walk from the Round Table is incredibly short.

“Well, um—” 

“Aadit, wait.” I can’t help but stare into his eyes, though glazed over with alcohol, still intense. “I know, that um, we talked about what happened kind of, earlier um, and decided that we shouldn’t, like, do anything, but—” He puts a hand on my shoulder and I stop talking, taken aback by the contact.

“Licity?” His voice is barely above a whisper, as he slowly begins to lower his face to meet mine.

“Yes?” He stops just before our noses touch.

“Can I kiss you again?” 

I don’t answer. Instead, I throw my arms around his wide shoulders and bring my face to his, my parted lips meeting his as he pulls me in closer. He tastes like alcohol this time, but I’m sure I do too.

His arms tight yet gentle around me as we kiss, I take an arm off his shoulder and fumble with the doorknob, opening it and guiding him inside as we keep kissing, both afraid that if we pull away it will end like the last time.

I pull him close to me, leading him to the couch, and we both sink into the cushions. Our knees touch as he continues to hold one of my shoulders, his grasp gentle but firm as we go down. His other hand starts on my knee, but as we continue to kiss he slowly slides it up my thigh, under my skirt, stopping just as his thumb grazes the underwear resting against my hip. He slowly strokes his thumb against my hip, just ever so slightly under the strip of fabric.

While not a virgin, I still haven’t had much experience when it comes to being with someone and I’m hesitant to push further, but thankfully Aadit begins to slowly take control, ever so gently, starting to kiss around my mouth, my cheeks, making his way to my ear or neck before going back to the mouth. Emboldened by his touch, or perhaps the alcohol, I shift, kneeling first and then slowly moving a leg over his lap, soon just straddling it as we continue to kiss. He moves away from my mouth again, trailing little kisses towards my ear, before slowly taking my earlobe in his mouth. Without thinking, a small gasp escapes my lips as I lean into him.

“Is this alright?” His breath is hot against my ear as he continues to kiss at it and my neck. I nod my head.

“Yeah, yes, it’s… very good.” I cup his face in my hands and move his lips back towards mine, leaning further into him, pushing him back into the couch. I can feel his erection through his pants, growing larger. His thumb continues to rub circles on my hips.

He trails kisses down my neck, and I slowly arch my neck back as he kisses my collarbone. He moves his hand slowly off my back, moving down to the hemline of my shirt.

“Can I?” He barely whispers the phrase, and I remove my hands from his hair and lift my shirt up and off, throwing it onto the floor behind me. I hear him chuckle softly as he kisses my shoulders, and I use a finger to lift his chin, to bring his gaze to mine.

“What’s so funny?” I whisper, leaning down into him to suck at his neck. I feel his lips smile on my ears, his breath hot as he replies.

“Nothing,” his voice low, “I just… noticed the bra this time.” He pulls me in closer and continues to kiss and suck various parts of my neck and collarbone, pointedly around the strap. I lean back to look at the ceiling. 

“Oh, so you did notice. I’m so—” my breath hitches as he unclasps my bra. I hadn’t notice his hands moving, so hypnotized by his lips. He pulls it off with one hand, his thumb returning to it’s spot on my hip, more fingers working their way under the band of my underwear. 

“How could I not notice?” He talks low into my chest as he kisses, parting his lips over one of my nipples sucking ever so slightly. A moan escapes my lips involuntarily as he rolls the other between his fingers. “They were so perfect, right there against me.” He releases himself from my breast, looking up at me, before pulling me in to meet his mouth again. 

“I had to turn around to hide just how perfect I thought they were.” His lips part around mine, and I pull him in harder, one hand laced in his hair, the other on his shoulder. His erection is full beneath me, straining against the fabric of his pants. I know how soaked my underpants are at this point, yearning for him, inside of me, touching me. Without thinking, I begin to slowly grind against his erection. A moan escapes his lips, deep and strained, as I suck on his neck and continue to grind. 

“Oh, Licity…” I feel his breath in my ear as I grind and suck on his earlobe. “I— shit.” Suddenly, he moves his hand from my breast and wraps it around my back. His hand that was slowly working my underpants off swiftly moves below my butt, and Aadit stands up, lifting me with him. My legs wrapped around his waist, he carries me towards the bed, and sets me down gently on my back, crawling on top of me, pressing down into me. Our hips continue to grind as his hands roam my body and he sucks on my nipples in turn.

He slips a finger back under the waistband of my underpants on my hips, but as we continue to kiss he slides the thumb closer and closer to my now absolutely dripping vagina. My breath hitches and I moan as he slips his thumb fully under the soaked fabric, sliding his appendage between the slick folds. He rubs his thumb around the outside of my hole for just a moment before finding my clit, and begins to slowly rub little circles as he kisses me harder; my mouth, my neck, my chest. I moan out, my hips bucking to meet his thumb, one of my hands locked in his hair, the other grabbing my headboard as he continues to trail kisses down. 

I want this. I want him more than anything else at this moment. I’ve dreamt about it for weeks, since our kiss at the farm, since our hands grazed each other at our first meeting. He keeps rubbing my clit, so soft and delicate, but the touch is driving me absolutely wild.

But then I remember how drunk I am, how I stumbled on the way here, how Aadit swayed when he picked me up, how strongly we must both reek of alcohol. I don’t want to stop, but our conversation earlier today has sent me mixed signals. I don’t want to be some drunken mistake. I need to ask and make sure. 

“Aadit.” My voice is a moan, a whisper. He circles a nipple with his tongue, and I feel him slide his index finger into my wet folds. I hadn’t even noticed that my underwear was off. He hums, trailing kisses down my stomach now. 

“Aadit, please.” He slips his finger inside of me, and I buck my hips in response. He feels so goddamn good. Grabbing my headboard, I look down at him as he slowly begins to pump his finger in and out of me. He pauses momentarily, and meets my gaze. He looks especially tan next to my pale stomach, his brown eyes full of lust yet soft and sweet, adoring. I don’t want to stop, but I have to check. I need to check. I don’t want to be his regret. I know he’ll say yes. He slips his finger back inside of me, eliciting another moan. He continues to kiss his way down, delicately, deliberately. 

“Aadit, please, stop!” I yell out louder than expected, forcing the words out of my mouth. I didn’t mean them to come out so harsh. My head is spinning. He pulls back quickly, looking up at me.

“Licity I—” He pulls his now slick finger out of me, and kneels back on my bed.

“Aadit, wait, I’m so sorry,” I sit up and try to grab his shoulder, but wobble from the fast movement. 

“Oh, oh god.” He jumps back out of the bed, standing at the foot. “You’re, oh you don’t want this, you’re… you’re drunk and I pushed it, I—” 

“Aadit! No, no that’s not it, I just wanted to check, I mean you’re drunk, still very good though—” He pushes his hair back out of his face, his previously soft eyes wild. He isn’t looking at me anymore, just vaguely into the distance, his eyes darting back and forth.

“I shouldn’t have done this. You don’t… I need to go. I’m sorry.” He abruptly turns around and starts walking towards the door.

“Aadit, wait, no!” I stand up, but remember I’m completely naked. “Shit.” I look around, trying to find my clothes, something to cover my body and bring Aadit back to me. Across the large room, Aadit grips the doorknob, but hesitates to turn it.

“Licity, I…” He trails off. He twists the knob and steps out into the warm night air, slamming the door behind him. Frustrated, I wrap my sheet around my body and run towards the door, stumbling over the long fabric. I fling the door open. 

“Aadit? Aadit!” I peer out into the night. Though the stars and moon shine overhead, I can’t see Aadit, already too far out of sight. Sighing, I walk back to the bed, flinging myself into it face first. 

“Shit.” I shouldn’t have spoken. I should have kept my mouth shut. Why must I always over think? Why couldn’t I just enjoy it, be present with him? I think about how he touched my breasts, sucked on my neck. I sit up and look in the mirror. I can see marks already forming on my chest and breast, love bites. I flop back into my pillow again. I wish he was here to hold me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehe thanks for reading! This is the first ever, like, fanfic I've written, and this is the first actual smutty scene I've written. Hopefully not the last. c u nxt week


	9. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> These were two chapter ideas that I had that were kinda short so I smashed them together, but I feel like they work. enjoy xoxo

I lay on Ginger’s lap, staring at the ceiling while she plays with my hair. It’s been a week since I’ve seen her last, enough time for the more obvious of my hickeys to fade. I’d been unable to talk to, or even find Aadit, and I’ve given up hope that there will be some sort of reconciliation between the two of us. Unable to talk about it to Emily, Sonia, and Antoine, I asked Ginger if we could have a sleepover, both to catch up and so that I could tell her everything that had happened.

“Well… shoot. That’s a lot, Lissy.” I’ve just finished explaining everything to her, minus some of the more intimate details. “I mean like, I guess you did the right thing? By double checking?” I sit up and put my head in my hands. 

“Ugh, I know, but I wish I would have let him just like… keep kissing me? You know? Not stopped him. Like he wanted to keep going obviously, I just, I was so paranoid and couldn’t believe it was happening.” She nods behind me.

“I guess if it’s meant to be, it’ll happen, you know? I mean, you’ve only been here, what, eight months now? I’m sure if it doesn’t happen, there’s plenty of other people here.” I lay back down next to her. I missed the sleepovers I used to have with friends when I was in school, so having them with Ginger was comforting. 

“I guess. It’s weird, you know? I mean I know him, like we’d chat when we worked, he knows about me, I know… some things about him. He doesn’t talk a lot about before Portia, now that I think of it.” I cock my head to the side. “But there was just… this spark? I don’t know. It’s like from the first time I met him, I just… wanted to be with him, you know?” Ginger is quiet next to me, and after a minute of silence lays back on her pillow, hands over her face. 

“It’s all just so romantic!” I turn my head around to watch her as she wobbles her head back and forth, hands still on her cheeks.

“What?”

“You and Aadit! It’s just so—” She sits back up and gets out of bed. I know she wants to move quickly, she’s trying to make some kind of point, but I can’t help but giggle a little as she tries to push herself up. I often forget just how sick she is. Once standing, she faces me again and weakly throws her arms out wide.

“The two of you! Destined to be lovers, separated by simple miscommunications, who will step in and rescue your kindled flame?” She clutches her hands to her chest as I laugh.

“Our what?” She slowly twirls.

“Your flame! Your spark, that love connection you feel, ugh, it’s just like out of a novel.” She moves back to the bed, slightly out of breath from her quick movements. I hold her hand and help guide her down, still laughing while I do so.

“You’re an absolute nut job.” She lays back down on the bed, leaving room for me to lay next to her.

“Well, I prefer the term hopeless romantic!” She smugly looks back up at me, and I lay down next to her. We lay in silence for a few seconds, staring up at the glow-in-the-dark stars she’s attached to her ceiling. 

“I don’t know. It’s probably just… an infatuation. I’ll move on.”

“Don’t be so sure.” She tilts her head to face me. “I think this is love.” I laugh.

“It’s not love, ding dong. We barely know each other. We only just… made out.”

“I still don’t buy that.” I turn my head to face her now. 

“Shut up. It’s just a crush.” I look back towards the ceiling, counting the stars.

“That’s what everyone says, before they realize it’s looooove.” I let out a tiny laugh and bite my lip. 

“You read too many romance novels.” She giggles.

“What else am I supposed to do?” Her eyes grow wide, and she sits upright. “Oh my god, you’re like my own romance novel now.” I let out a honk of a laugh, covering my mouth with both hands. “Choose your own adventure! I’m making this a choose your own adventure. I choose you go talk to him!” 

She whips around to face me, eyes wild and with a big grin. I’m holding my stomach from laughing too hard, and she flops back down and starts laughing too. I try to breath, calming down enough to barely speak.

“I did! Ginger I really tried, I went to the tree farm yesterday, and he, oh my god Ginger when he saw me—” My breath hitches, caught from laughter— ‘He turned around and walked away!” She gasps, but then bursts back out laughing.

“Oh my god! That’s so mean! I’m so sorry!” Her face is red from laughter, and I’ve begun to laugh so hard I have tears streaming down my face.

“It’s not funny! It’s really not!” We continue to cackle, tears streaming down our faces until we hear a sharp knock on the door. Gust cracks open the door and sticks his head in, his long hair swaying. 

“Is someone being murdered here? It’s so loud. You’re so... goddamn loud.” It’s strange, seeing Gust at home. Whenever I see him around town he’s so uptight and insufferable, but at home he seems more… comfortable. Casual.

“What are you, the fun police?” Ginger lifts herself back up, grabbing one of her throw pillows. “You can go now!” She tries to throw a pillow at Gust, but the pillow lands at the end of the bed, feet away from Gust. I immediately burst into laughter, holding my stomach once again, and Ginger curls up into a ball, shaking from laughter. Gust rolls his eyes and walks out, shutting the door quickly behind him.

“Oh God, I needed this laugh,” I say after finally calming down. “I’m so glad I met you, Ginger.” She wipes a tear off her face and turns to face me.

“Me too, Liss.” She stares at the ceiling, quiet for a moment before speaking again. “Can I ask you a weird question?”

“Yeah, of course.”

“What did… what did kissing Aadit feel like? I guess just like… in general, kissing.” I turn my head to meet her gaze. She’s still flushed bright red from laughter, but it seems as if the blush is deepening once again from embarrassment. 

“I mean… Hm. I guess my heart and stomach felt jumpy, like butterflies. The lips just kinda… connect.” I pause. “The act itself is actually kinda gross when I think about it. Just kinda, mashing together I guess. Wetter than anticipated.” She lets out a small giggle.  
“I just wish that I could experience it, at least once.” She sighs deeply, rolling back to look at the ceiling. “It’s hard when I seem to spend all my time here.” I purse my lips, thinking.

“Ginger… Do you want me to kiss you? Just once, to see how it feels?” She rolls her head back to me. I can’t read her expression, but her eyes are intense, I can practically see the thoughts spinning behind her eyes.

“N… Mm… Sure.” I feel like my heart stops beating in my chest. I move a hand to cup her face, and move in closer until our lips almost touch. I can practically hear her heartbeat as she closes the distance, our lips gently enveloping each other.

The kiss is brief, but sweet. Ginger, hesitant at first, embraces it, and when we pull back we make intense eye contact, neither of us willing to look away first. After just a few seconds though, we both start to giggle, rolling on our backs to face the ceiling once more.

“You were right, that was weird.” Ginger giggles a little bit more, then turns to face me. “Thank you for my first, and hopefully only kiss.” I laugh.

“No problem. Anything for you my sweet Ginger, who I am now DEEPLY in love with!” I say, jumping up and twirling around. She laughs and props herself up.

“Oh my god, stop! I just wanted to know what it felt like!” I flop down next to her.

“Too bad. You’ve cursed me.” She rolls her eyes and flips her hair over her shoulder.

“You’re a ding dong.” 

“I’m your ding dong now.” I laugh and roll over. “Well, after all that strange excitement, I think it’s time to sleep.”   
“What?” She pokes my back. “Well, actually yeah. It has been a long day.” I laugh and get out of the bed.

“I’ll go turn off the lights. Do you need any help getting that machine on?” I point to the strange contraption next to the bed. I don’t know how it works, just that Ginger has to hook up to it somehow every night.

“Nah, I got it.” She slides under the covers as I walk across the room and turn off the lights, and come back to join her in bed.

“Hey, Lissy?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.” I smile in the darkness.

“No problem.”

“Also I don’t want to ever do that again.” I let out a big honk of a laugh and cover my mouth while Ginger giggles again. Suddenly, we can hear Gust pounding on the wall from the next room over.

“Can you two PLEASE go to sleep?” We hear, muffled through the wall. I throw a throw pillow at the wall, and Ginger tries to quietly laugh as she settles in. 

I pull the blanket higher up over my shoulder, facing away from Ginger, thinking about the kiss. I’m not quite sure if that awakened something in me, but I don’t have the mental capacity to deal with that quite yet. 

******************************************************************************

When I wake up the room is still dark, and when I check my watch I see it’s only three in the morning. I sit up and rub my eyes, and look down at Ginger, who’s sleeping peacefully. My throat feels incredibly dry, so I slip out of the bed and sneak towards the kitchen, trying my best to make as little noise as possible to prevent waking up the other members of the house.

I get to the kitchen and start slowly opening cabinets, not entirely sure where the glasses are at. I should have paid more attention where they were when we ate dinner. I turn around to check the cabinets lining the other wall, and to my surprise Gust is standing behind me, arms crossed leaning against the kitchen island. He’s in a t-shirt and long pajama pants, much different from his usual blue suit. His hair is pulled back into a messy bun behind his head, and he looking me up and down, an eyebrow cocked.

“You casing the house, or…?” I flush deeply.

“No! No, I was just looking for the glasses, to get a quick drink of water.” He nods, and reaches up to open the cabinet behind him, pulling out two glasses.

“Me too.” He fills up the glasses in the kitchen sink and hands one to me.

“Thanks.” I take a long sip as he leans back against the island counter. I feel awkward, and try not to make direct eye contact with him, instead scanning the rest of the room around me.

“You know, as annoying as the two of you were in there earlier, I’m glad you’re here. For Ginger.” I look up at him, only a few feet away from me but still having to look up to meet his gaze.

“Oh, yeah, I mean, she’s a nice girl, I like hanging out with her.” I brush a piece of hair behind my ear. The tone he’s taking with me is much different than the one he took that night outside of my workshop.

“I know she’s a nice girl. Believe me.” He takes a long sip of his drink and sets it down next to him. “No one else has really stuck it out. But I guess, like you said, you know how it is.”

“Yeah,” I say, nodding and looking down. “I guess I know how to really stick it out I guess.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, how did your mother pass?” I look up at him, shocked that he cares enough to ask the question.

“Radiation poisoning.” He nods. “Things weren’t as clean in the town where she grew up, and I guess it caught up to her later.”

“That must have been hard for you and your father.” I can’t help but let out a quiet little laugh, no more than a heavy breath through the nose.

“He was already long gone by then. He left us when I was still just a kid, to come here, apparently. I was the only one there for my mom,” I say, looking back up at him. “I guess that’s why I’m so good at sticking around. After she died, though, I knew I couldn’t stay there anymore. I had to… start fresh.” He nods again. “My father had sent a letter about where he was when I was older, so I finally decided to come, only to find out he had already moved on, again.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” He looks sincere as he speaks, his eyes studying me. Maybe I’m finally cracking down his walls?

“If you don’t mind ME asking, I guess, how is… Ginger ill?” His face immediately becomes colder again. Shoot.

“We don’t know.” I cock my head to the side. “I’m not being cute, we honestly don’t know. She was fine until… one day she wasn’t.” 

“Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.” He nods and looks down. “I’m sure she really appreciates you being here for her. As annoying as you are, you’re a good brother.”

“I’m really not.” He looks back up at me, eyes intense.

“What? You totally are. You’re always around, helping her out and stuff.” He turns his head to look away, and takes a sip of water. I finish my glass.

“I have to make up for lost time. I want to be here as much as I can before…” He sets the glass down. 

“Don’t worry, I get it.” He stares off into the distance some more, and then shakes his head.

“When I was younger, and stupid, I resented her. I blamed her for my mother’s death. I didn’t understand. But when she got sick…” He runs a hand over his slicked back hair. “I knew I needed to come back, to make it up. I didn’t… I don’t want to regret anything.” I set my glass in the sink, and close the gap between us. When I gingerly put my hand on his elbow, he looks at me shocked, surprised I’m so close. 

“You’re a good brother, Gust. I know she really loves you.” He smiles for almost a second, and then nods his head. 

“Thanks.” I take a step back as he puts his glass in the sink.

“Well, goodnight. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I take a few steps back towards the bedrooms, when I feel Gust’s hand on my elbow now. But instead of a light touch, he’s grabbed it.

“Licity, wait.” I begin to turn around to face him once more, but he’s already pulling me back in. I now rapidly spin around back to him, and his hand on my elbow pulls me in close, until our bodies are touching. With his other hand, he cups my face and pulls me in for a deep kiss.

I’m shocked as his lips collide with mine, his hand in my hair pulling me in, and before I realize what I’m doing I’m kissing him back, an arm thrown up around his neck. He turns me around so that my back is to the kitchen island, our bodies never parting from each other. It’s almost as if he has this hunger, not wanting to let go of me, each kiss trying to be more.

He works his hands down to my hips, and lightly guides my hips down and back up. I nod, bend my knees and jump, trying not to hit our heads as he guides me to sit on top of the island, not breaking our kiss. His hand moves back up to my hair, holding me close to his face as I feel his tongue gently against my mouth. I part my lips letting it in, rocking back as he leans even closer into me. 

His other hand works its way up from my hip, lightly stroking the side of my rib right below my breast. He cups it, and starts squeezing it until he can feel my nipple through through the fabric of my night shirt, and begins rolling it between his fingers as he continues to massage my tit. Without intending to, my lips part again and I let out a small moan, just a little whimper of an exhale, and he moves his mouth to kiss around my jaw. I lean forward, trying to push myself into him when suddenly—

“Hoolulu.” I look behind Gust, eyes now fully open to see a sleepy QQ has wandered into the kitchen. The pig stumbles over to his water dish and begins lazily lapping up the water, unaware of what’s going on. Gust pulls back and looks at QQ as well, watching as the pig trots out of the room, bumping into the doorframe on his way out. When the pig is gone, Gust turns back to stare at me, face once again stone cold as he looks me up and down. 

“I should go back to bed. Goodnight.” Without another word, Gust turns around and strolls out of the room, hair falling out of his messy bun, most likely a result of my hands grabbing the back of his head. I pant on the counter for a second, out of breath from the encounter, trying to put together what exactly happened. I hop down, take one last look around the room, and begin my walk back to Ginger’s room.

Once there, I slide back into bed and pull the covers up to the bottom of my chin. I hear Ginger stir beside me.

“Where did you go?” Her voice is hoarse from sleep, and she sounds out of it, a momentary awakening from slumber. 

“I just had to go to the bathroom.” I stare straight ahead, not turning to face her. 

“Oh.” She yawns and rolls back over. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight Ginger.” I don’t know if I can sleep. I stare at the wall for what feels like an eternity before I slowly drift off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank yooh for reading see you next week maybe hehe xoxo


	10. Chapter Ten

I’m sitting across from Emily at the little table outside of the Round Table, slowly sipping on my coffee and pulling my cardigan in closer. The temperature was quickly dipping, the warm and pleasant days of early fall were long gone. More and more of the leaves had begun to fall, and I couldn’t help but think of the tree farm. How beautiful must it be there? 

I didn’t want to talk about what had happened that night with Gust with Ginger because, I mean, ew, it’s her brother. The whole thing felt like some kind of big betrayal to her, kissing her brother like that, but it felt so icky that I wanted to get the whole thing out of me, had to talk about it with someone. And as much as I love Sonia and Antoine, I know I can’t trust them to keep a secret. I had asked Emily to meet me at the Round Table, as she was the more level-headed of my friends. We had only really ordered; I hadn’t told her about the weird make-out session yet.

“So like, Ginger and I go to bed or whatever, and I go to the kitchen, and Gust is there, yeah? And like, we start talking and it was actually kind of surprising, I didn’t realize how tough things had been for the family.” Emily nods, and takes a sip of her own drink.

“Yeah, it was pretty rough I remember. I mean, I was too young to remember when Liza died, but I remember when Ginger got sick and stuff. It wasn’t pretty for a while.” While Emily is talking I see her gaze drift behind me, but don’t really think anything of it. 

“Like, he just feels so guilty about leaving. And then he asked me about my mom, and that whole situation, and it really felt like we were finally clicking, you know?”

“Mmhmm.” She’s occasionally looking at me, but her focus is somewhere behind me. Maybe she’s just thinking?

“But then, oh god, I mean, he just kind of kissed me? Not like a little, like a full, big thing. It felt so weird, but I guess I didn’t exactly push away.”

“Oh, yeah.” I tilt my head a little. Emily’s not even pretending to look at me anymore.

“It got kinda hot and heavy, too, like we were making out for a while.” 

“Yeah, crazy.” Her face is expressionless as she stares off. I don’t think she’s registered a single word I’ve said. I get an idea.

“And then he left, but Gale and Russo came out, and boy, did we do some acrobatic stuff. My legs were just— woof. Russo’s really a beast in the bedroom.”

“Oh, that’s nice.” She’s completely checked out. I turn around to try and figure out what’s captured her attention. I scan the area behind me: Mars’ girls are skipping up and down the street, and I see Remington and Arlo walking up on the bridge above. But then, I get it.

Alice is stocking her flower stand almost directly behind where I’m sitting, lifting boxes and reorganizing bouquets for the fall season. There’s a lot of decorative pine cones involved. But Alice hasn’t noticed that the top button of her blouse has come undone while lifting the boxes, and just a little bit of her cleavage is poking through. I whip back around to face Emily, who is completely mesmerized by the scene. 

“Oh. My. God. Earth to Em.” I wave my hand in front of her face, and she suddenly snaps out of her trance.

“Hey! What?” She blinks at me, dumbfounded.

“Dude, do you have a big old crush on Alice?” Her normally pale skin flushes bright red, and she reaches across the table to cover my mouth.

“Shut up! Quiet down, or I mean…” She lowers her hand, but I raise up my own to cover my big goofy smile.

“Oh my god, that’s so cute.” I turn back to look at Alice, who’s wiping sweat from her forehead. 

“Hey!” Emily snaps, and I turn back to face her. “Don’t be so obvious!” She slouches down into her chair, trying to be small.

“Why don’t you go talk to her? Like, go buy a flower or something?” She covers her own face with her hands now.

“I’m scared.” I giggle.

“What? Why? She’s super nice, AND cute, and you’re also super nice and cute, you two would be great.” She rubs her temples, eyes shut.

“I don’t know, it’s just… I’ve kinda been into her for a while, and like, I don’t even know if she’s into… you know.” She looks down.

“Oh, I hadn’t even considered that.” I purse my lips. “Well, when you guys do talk, how does she act?” Emily looks up at me.

“I mean, normal? I think? I don’t have much experience with, like, the whole flirting thing.” I nod. “I guess… Lucy and I kinda did the whole talking thing for a while,” she says putting air quotes around talking, “but it just kinda fizzled, we just weren’t, like, very compatible.” I nod again. 

“Why don’t you go talk to her? You don’t need to ask her out or anything, but like, I wanna see how you two interract, or whatever.” Emily tilts her head. “Sometimes it’s easier from the outside to see how two people interact, you know?” She nods.

“Kinda like you and Aadit.” I feel myself pale, and Emily smiles again.  “Oh! I knew something was up there. I told Sonia that you two were totally into each other, but she didn’t believe me.”

“I don’t know if that’s the case anymore.” I look down and pull my cardigan tighter.

“Wait… did something happen there?” She leans forward and props her head in her hands.

“That’s a story for another time, I think. And hey! Don’t think I forgot about you.” She slumps back down in her chair, crossing her arms. “That proves my point too. You saw something that I was… too close to see. Now go buy a bouquet!” She huffs and stands up, but then hesitates. I reach out and squeeze her hand, and she marches off.

I watch as she approaches Alice, more reserved than she usually is. They chat, and I notice Alice also seems kind of nervous, and she drops the first bouquet that she tries to show to Emily. Both look kind of flustered, but I’m extremely excited. I think they might actually work. Emily’s hand lingers for just a second as Alice hands her the bouquet, and then as if planned they both turn completely around, Alice to tend her stand and Emily to pretend she’s not just full on running back to me.

“So how did it look?” Emily sits back down at the table, practically panting. Is she… sweating? I stare at her, incredulous. 

“Is that… Is that how you flirt?” She nods, and throws the bouquet down on the table. “Emily, I love you, you know that, but that was one of the weirdest things I have ever seen. Like, absolutely tragic.”

“Nooooo.” She lays her head down on the table and continues to moan.

“That being said,” Emily looks up at me. “I think there’s like, at least a 50 percent chance she’s into you? Weirdly enough I think she flirts in the same terrible, terrible way you do.” Emily straighted up in her chair.

“Oh, that’s great!” Her smile drops. “Oh… but what if you’re wrong?” 

“Calm down. We’ll figure it out.” I lean back in my chair and take a sip of my now luke-warm coffee. “Anyways, did you wanna meet up later tonight? Django put some new dish on the menu but told me I couldn’t have it til the dinner service.” I roll my eyes. “He literally owns the restaurant, it’s not like he has to wait.” Emily nods.

“Yeah, I can come back later. Like 7? If that’s not too late.” I nod. “Sweet, I’ll see you then.” She begins to get out of her chair, but then pauses and looks back at me. “Wait, did you say you and Russo…?” I smack her arm.

“I started speaking gibberish because I didn’t think you were listening. I’ll see you later.” She takes a step away. “Oh, don’t forget the flowers.” I hand her the bouquet. 

As soon as Emily is outside of the gates, I slam the rest of my coffee and dash towards Alice. I surprise her when I get there, and she jumps when she sees me.

“Oh! Licity, nice to see you. Did you want to get another one of the mum bouquets? I think I think I have one here.” She begins to rummage through the stand.

“No, no, I just had a question for you.” She turns back around to look up at me. Gosh, she is short. “Where do you get your flowers in the winter?” She scratches the back of her head.

“Oh! Well, um, I have a bunch of planters in our home, so I try to grow some seasonally appropriate plants in it. I can’t put out too many, though, due to limited space.” She smiles up at me. “Inventory kinda shrinks when it snows.” I nod.

“Oh, I wondered, I was talking with Emily about it when we were grabbing a coffee over there a bit ago.” She blushes slightly when I say Emily’s name.

“You two were talking about me?” I nod and smile.

“Oh yeah, she bought that bouquet, she’d been eyeing it for a while, she loves your work—” Alice blushes again— “and we were just curious where you grew plants in the winter.” 

“Thats cool, cool stuff.” Alice adjusts some of the flowers in her display. I want to get her attention again.

“Anyways, I know Emily has a greenhouse that they use, but they don’t do much in the winter, and I suggested that maybe you’d like to use it to grow flowers in it then, like she could rent it out to you.” Alice’s eyes light up.

“Really?” I nod. 

“Yeah! She was going to ask you about it again, um, but she had to go do something with the cows.” I wave my hand around. “I don’t know much about farm stuff.” Alice nods.

“That would be so cool! Maybe I’ll go ask her about it later.” I nod.

“Actually, I’m here to set that up! Emily wanted me to ask you if you wanted to meet at the Round Table tonight, about 7, to discuss business?” Alice tries to hide her smile, but I can see it peak through.

“Uh, yeah! I can do that then. I’ll see you then.” I squeeze her shoulder. 

“Great! It’s a date.” I walk away from the stand, smiling. This is gonna be so good.

As I go to make my way home, I notice out of the corner of my eye Aadit, standing in front of Martha’s bakery. I turn, and watch as the two of them talk. He’s bent over, eyeing some of the pastries, and laughs when Martha makes a joke. I’ve never seen him so relaxed. Martha packs up what I think is a danish, and he thanks her, shaking her hand as he does so. He turns, and we make eye contact. His smile drops, and I feel like I can feel my heart splinter just a little bit further. I smile weakly and wave, hoping for a response, but he nods solemnly, turns around, and walks towards the wishing tree to eat. I turn to make my way home, and as I walk, try to ignore the tears I feel on my face.

******************************************************************************

Just a bit before 7 I wait outside of the Round Table, scanning for Emily and Alice. I spot Alice coming out of her home, which I hadn’t even realized was the little building next to the Round Table. I notice she’s changed into a nicer shirt and try to hide my smile as she approaches. 

“Hey, Licity! Hope I’m not late.” I shake my head.

“Oh, no, you’re early. Um, I was early, just wanted to wait out here for you and Em. Why don’t you go grab us a table?” She nods and heads in, just before I see Emily rounding the corner of the gate. I sprint up to her, and she throws me a weird look.

“Dude, you good?” I grab her shoulders.

“Don’t be mad.” Her face drops. It feels like her eyes are boring through me. 

“What did you do? Or do you just need to cancel, that’s fine—” I shake my head, and start to lead her towards the restaurant.

“So, I might have talked to Alice after our little coffee chat this morning.” She stops, and I stumble back.

“You didn’t.” I start pulling her again.

“Hush! It wasn’t anything bad, I just came up with a little business proposition. You said you don’t use the greenhouse too much anymore, yeah?” She tilts her head back and forth, considering.

“Well, no, not really. Something about the soil in there, no matter what we do, makes the produce taste kinda funky.” I nod.

“Flowers don’t need to taste good, though. I told Alice that you might be interested in renting out the greenhouse to her during the winter, to help her business.” Emily lips purse.

“Well, actually, that’s not too bad of an idea. She’d make more money, we’d spend more time together, and I guess I could make a little extra income on the side that way. I guess I could talk to her about it.” She tries to hide her smile, but I don’t hide mine.

“Well, good news,” I say, flinging open the door to the Round Table. “This is a business meeting.” Emily’s face flushes as she spots Alice at a table, and Alice waves at the two of us as we walk towards her.

“Hey! Alice, so glad you could… make it.” Emily tries to act natural, suggesting she knew the plan all along, but I can feel her fingers squeezing into my forearm tighter as I lead her closer.

“Hi Emily. I’m so excited to talk to you. About the greenhouse!” God, these two are a mess. I hope this works. 

“I’m so excited we could do this tonight, ladies.” I let Emily slide into the booth first, across from Alice, and sit next to her. “I’m glad I caught you earlier, Alice, so you and Emily could get this going.”

“Yeah, me too.” Emily shakes herself out of her dreamy gaze towards Alice, and fidgets with her napkins. “So um, renting the greenhouse is a cool idea. Very nice.” Alice brushes a piece of hair behind her ears.

“Yeah, it was a great idea Emily.” She adjusts her glasses and takes a sip of water. I don’t want to leave, I want to see their beautiful relationship blossom or whatever, but know it’s going to be more awkward with me here.

“Oh shoot,” I say, and stand up. Emily looks up at me with a wild look in her eyes, but Alice looks concerned. 

“Everything alright, Licity?” I nod at Alice.

“Yes, I feel so bad, but I forgot I have a commission due tomorrow that I haven’t finished yet. I’m afraid I’ll have to leave you two on your own.” Alice nods, and Emily’s lips press together tightly, forming a thin line. “I’m sure this’ll go great, though. Have a good night!”

I start to back away from the table, waving at the two of them as I do. Alice waves back, but Emily’s eyes are wide and wild. When Alice takes a sip of her water, I mouth “you got this!” to Emily, who almost moves as if she’s about to chase me but instead just smiles at Alice, who looks at her after sensing her slight movement. 

I leave the restaurant, shivering at the cold air against my skin as I do. I hope those two figure it out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe sorry it's late I got distracted (aka I've been playing too much stardew valley and wrote a little Harvey smut if you wanna read it) (It's The Doctor is Out by.... me. ForgotTheEgg)
> 
> xoxo thanks for reading


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe there's some seggsy stuff in this one enjoy xoxo
> 
> I was like 2 days late on the last chapter so I’m giving you this one two days early mwah

I sat hunched over, barely able to listen to what Antoine was prattling on about at our weekly dinner gossip session. My body aches— I’ve been pushing myself far too hard over the past year, trying to quickly finish every city commission that Gale has issued before Higgens could, but now I’m just exhausted. I stare out straight ahead, and make up my mind— no more commissions over a C rank for the next two months. Just… easy puttering around.

“Earth to Licity? Hello?” I’m shocked out of my stupor when Antoine waves his hand back and forth in front of my face. I jolt upright, surprised by the sudden movement. “Babes, you good?” I shake to clear my head.

“Yeah, sorry. I’m just out of it. I’ve been going non-stop this past week trying to install that stupid fucking boiler and my back is killing me.” I lean back in my chair, trying to curve my spine around the tip of it. Sonia nods.

“It’s been pretty cold too, I’m sure that doesn’t help with the ache.” I nod. “At least the snow is pretty?” I smile.

“You got me there.” Antoine rolls his eyes.

“Why does no one listen to me speak? Do you not care about me, or…?” Emily rubs her fist in his hair.

“Of course we do pal. But not when you’re being boring.” The three of us giggle while Antoine blows out a huffy breath from his nose.

“Fine, you want something interesting?” Sonia leans forward, propping her head up in her hands.

“Yes, please. If I hear another story about a rude builder at the guild or whatever my head might explode.” Antoine looks at Emily with an exaggerated shocked look, and she grimaces and nods back at him.

“Fine!” He leans forward and begins to speak in a hushed tone. “When I was outside of the clinic earlier today, don’t ask why, I saw Arlo and Nora making out behind the Corps.” He leans back in his chair and crosses his arms, looking smug. Sonia frowns.

“Is that really all? Like, we all knew they’re doing it or whatever.” Antoine huffs.

“But behind the Corps building? Awfully bold.” It takes all of my effort to not blurt out ‘better than in the park,’ but I don’t want Sonia to know that I know. Or relive any moment of that night. Emily’s staring out the window, barely paying attention. 

“Hey, does anyone wanna go to the hot spring tomorrow?” Emily looks over at me. “I know it’s cold, but it’d probably feel good in the actual spring. Also, my body hurt.” 

“Ooh, I work tomorrow. I’d definitely go this weekend though.” Antoine folds his fingers in front of him, frowning. “It probably would feel really nice though.” Sonia nods.

“I work the day shift tomorrow too. Definitely another time.” I nod now, and turn to Emily.

“Em? You up?” She shakes her head and slightly blushes.

“I can’t, sorry. Alice and I have plans for tomorrow.” She smiles and looks away again. Since their first accidental date about a month and a half ago, Emily and Alice had been going out at least twice a week. Emily never missed our weekly dinner, but most of her spare time now was spent with her girlfriend. Antoine smiles and pokes her in the shoulder repeatedly. 

“Ooooh, you two are so cute. I guess it proves love IS real!” He flings his arms out wide, and Sonia laughs. Emily blushes.

“I wouldn’t say love quite yet,” she mumbles, and Sonia reaches across the table to lightly punch her arm.

“Oh shut up, you two are crazy for each other.” She rolls her eyes and pretends to be annoyed, but can’t contain her smile. “If only someone would love me!” I shush her.

“Be quiet! You’re going to summon Albert, I don’t want him being clingy here during ladies night.” The rest of the table bursts out laughing, and I laugh along with them. What I don’t want them to know is what I really don’t want is for Gust to follow him over.

***************************************************************

The DeeDee comes to a stop in front of the hot springs. I hop out of the cab, wincing as my foot hits the ground. I can’t wait to soak. Seeing as how the rest of my friends couldn’t come, I decided to visit the hot springs by myself— why shouldn’t I enjoy the fruits of my labor? I head inside the little shack and change into my swimsuit. The only one I could find was a black bikini, which won’t be fun to wear when I’m out of the water and exposed to the elements, but hopefully I’m able to jump in pretty quickly. And it’s pretty high waisted, almost like a big pair of granny panties, so hopefully that will help. 

I notice that another locker has been claimed as I put my clothes into an open one. Hopefully it’s not one of the Hulu brothers, but knowing their weird obsession with water based activities, it probably will be. I rub my temples. Of course they’d know it’s open before Gale’s announcement. Bracing myself for what I’m sure will be an emotionally draining conversation, I walk out of the back door, towel wrapped around my shoulders to keep warm.

I waddle towards the sitting area once outside, face turned down to keep it out of the wind and to watch for slippery spots. When I do look up to get into the seating area, my heart drops. Thankfully it’s not a Hulu brother here, but somehow seeing Aadit’s own shocked face is somehow worse. He flinches— there’s nowhere to run. He sinks into the water, his head the only thing above the surface.

We’re silent for a moment, studying each other. His large, brown eyes look so sad, but his eyebrows are raised in shock. His long black hair is pulled into a bun on the top of his head like mine is, but a few stray pieces of his hair around the bottom of his hairline have fallen, damp and curling from the steam. Even in the dead of winter, he’s still so very tan. I can’t tell where, what he’s looking at, what he’s thinking. I just stand above the wooden floating pool, shivering.

“Licity.” His voice is so soft, almost cracking. He tries again. “I’ll go, I should go.” He starts to move towards the ladder, towards me. 

“Aadit, no, don’t—” 

“No, I shouldn’t… I should go.”

“Aadit, please just—” 

“It was nice to see you, I’ll just—” 

“Just STOP!” I yell, much louder than I had anticipated. He looks up at me, eyes wide. “Just stop leaving.” My voice cracks, and he slides back into his seat, still hiding below the water.

“Licity—” I drop my towel.

“Just shut up! I’ve been trying for MONTHS to talk to you, and you just keep walking away and I am SICK of it!” I stomp my foot. I must look like a foolish little girl to him, already on the verge of tears even though nothing has been said. I take a breath, trying to calm down. “I just want to talk.” He stares at me, just stares at me as my shoulders slump. “Please.”

“I— sure, yes. Alright.” He nods and swallows, and looks down at the water.

“What happened?” He looks up at me now, lips pressed together tightly, frowning. He looks so sad. 

“I just…” His voice is a whisper. “I misread, you didn’t want to do… that.” I’m shaking. I don’t know if it’s from anger or the cold. He seems to register my movement, and further away from the ladder. “Liss, Licity, you can come in. It’s… freezing out.” I nod and step in.

The water is shocking to step into, much hotter than the freezing air above. It’s almost painful, but I sink in, both to get out of the cold and to be closer to him.

“Why did you… Why do you think that?” He bites his lip.

“We, earlier, had that whole talk about not doing… that, and then I just ruined it. You told me to stop and I realized I messed it all up.” I slide a bit closer, and he flinches. 

“Aadit, that’s not why. I just, we were both drunk, and we had had that conversation earlier in the day, I just wanted to make sure you weren’t feeling pressured or whatever or wouldn’t regret… being with me.” He looks off into the distance, and smiles for just a second, so quickly I almost missed the slight upturn of his lips. He looks back at me.

“I wouldn’t regret you.” He turns his head back down towards the water, and lets out a small chuckle. “I thought you would regret me.” As he’s been talking, he’d slowly been sliding up out of the water, once again at his full height sitting. His shoulders were a few inches above the water, exposed to the air. I notice a number of silvery scars, faded with age, scattered all over the exposed skin, down his arms, down his chest. I brush some stray hair behind my ears.

“Not at all.” I stare into the water in front of me for a moment. “Why wouldn’t you talk to me?”

“I thought you hated me. I thought I hurt you.” I turn to meet his gaze, unable to resist staring into his eyes. I can’t help but sense some kind of pain behind his eyes, this sadness or regret that I feel every time I look into them. Maybe that’s why I was so drawn to him— my job is to fix things, after all. 

“No, I didn’t. I don’t. You didn’t do anything wrong.” As I speak I slide closer to him, and reach out to touch his shoulder without even thinking. He flinches and almost pulls back when I do. I feel his muscles tense (which I can now easily see thanks to the absence of his usual long shirt), but he relaxes when I pull away.

“I’m sorry.” I pull my hand back, grimacing. He reaches his own hand out, almost touching my shoulder, but hesitates at the last second before dropping it.

“No, it’s alright.” We spend a minute in silence, looking out across the spring, stealing glances at each other. He speaks suddenly. 

“I just… I didn’t plan on getting attached at all coming here. The good things in my life before didn’t—” he pauses, trying to think of a word— “last.” He looks over to me. “I didn’t even think I would stay here, but it's… safe. I think maybe why I got so upset that night was just…” He looks away again. “It’s been a long time since I’ve felt comfortable, and I think realizing that made me afraid.” 

My hand has been next to his, splayed out on the bench, and when he finishes talking I slide it over, setting my hand gently upon his in the water. I feel his hand tense momentarily but he doesn’t pull back, instead turning to look down at me. I bite my lip.

“I understand it was… rough, but I don’t think it’s healthy to shut off your emotions forever.” He nods and looks down. “Aadit, why did you come to Portia?” He scratches his head and sighs. I notice as he does a small scar behind his ear. He thinks carefully about his answer.

“In my town, in... Duvos,” he says, eyes flicking towards me to gauge my reaction, but I try to stay as stone faced as possible, “You were enlisted in the army. There was no choice.” He sighs again, and stares straight in front of him, eyes clouding over. “It wasn’t good. I had to do things that I would rather forget, never talk about again. It was hell. When I was able to, I fled. And I ran, I came here. It wasn’t supposed to be permanent, but the people were so kind. Dawa needed help, and I loved working outside, so I stayed. I was afraid, I’m still afraid sometimes, that they’re still looking for me, but I don’t know anymore.” 

He rubs at his chin, staring into the distance. I gently squeeze his hand and he looks back at me, almost as if he forgot I was even there. I smile weakly at him, and he does the same. I look at his exposed shoulders and chest, at the scars again. I reach out and he tenses again, but relaxes when I slowly trace my finger over a scar on his chest.

“Is this why you wear those long shirts and sweaters all the time?” I whisper the question, immediately regretting saying it. He bites his lip and nods. 

“I don’t want to remember any of it, I don’t want other people to know, to think I’m some kind of monster.” I look up at him, concerned and sad. “I just want to… Forget any of it happened. Pretend that I’ve always been here.” 

We make eye contact, and I lay my palm flat against him. I can feel his heartbeat through his muscular chest, toned from years of work at the tree farm, or years of service? I look down at a scar on his shoulder, and lean forward to kiss it gently. I pull back away, dropping my hand from his chest, but keeping my hand on his below the water.

“You’re not a monster, Aadit. You’re human. And you’re safe.” I pause, my knee bouncing below the water. “I want to make you feel safe, Aadit. I don’t think poorly of you at all, I… I would say I think quite the opposite.” I meet his gaze again, trying to read his expression. I can’t glean anything from him.

He suddenly slides his hand out from under mine, and I’m afraid he’s pulling away again, retreating further. Instead, he cups my face with both hands, leans down and pulls me in for a kiss. As large and as muscular as he is, even with both his hands around my face, he feels so delicate as he sucks on my lip, slowly sliding closer to close the gaps between our bodies. I lean into him, not wanting this moment to end again. I slide my hand up his back, now feeling even more raised skin from scars up his back as I make my way to his neck, holding the back of it as we kiss.

As much as I love this moment I pull away, his eyes flying open as I do. His jaw drops. 

“Is this okay, I didn’t—” His breathing quickens, and before he can say anything else I cup his face with my hand, my thumb over his mouth.

“Stop worrying.” His mouth closes, still under my finger. “I want this.” I smile a little, a laugh blowing out of my nose. “Not to kill the moment, but this is a weird angle—” I move in the little floating pool from sitting next to him, sliding my hand from his mouth to the back of his neck to swing around and straddle his lap— “And I just wanted to get closer.” I lean forward so that our foreheads touch, and his expression changes from worry to a small smile. 

“Good.” I bring my mouth to his and we kiss again. I bring up my arms and wrap them around the back of his neck, trying to pull myself in closer. His hands rest on my hips below the water, his thumbs rubbing small circles on the exposed skin above my bikini bottoms. More hair falls out of his bun when I slide my hand up the back of his head, leaving kisses along his cheek and jawline before making my way back to his mouth. He pulls away for a second, and when I look at him, he’s calmly smiling, his eyes roaming my face.

“You could do much better than me, you know.” He’s still smiling, but that sadness has returned to his eyes, just a little. I kiss the tip of his nose.

“I think you’re much better than you think you are.” His smile grows, and he now pulls me into him, hand on the back of my head for a much deeper kiss. His teeth graze my lower lip, a painless little bite, and one of his hands slides up from my waist to grab my breast. He tenderly begins to palm it, squeezing and pulling at it. He’s much more reserved than Gust was, much more gentle. I can’t help but get excited as he does, my hips slowly pushing closer to him as he plays with me.

I can feel his erection growing below me, and I think back to the night on the couch, determined for this to end differently. As his bulge continues to grow, I rock myself against it, slowly back and forth, just teasing. I hear him sigh as I do, and he squeezes my breast tighter for a second, before going back to his gentle tugging, his hand now sliding below the bottom of the swim top making direct contact with my skin. His other hand leaves my hip, snaking its way around to grab my ass, squeezing and almost pushing it as I continue to rock my hips against him.

He sighs again, and his mouth leaves mine, trailing kisses along my cheek to my ear, sucking slightly on my earlobe as I continue to grind. I hum approval into his ear, kissing his temple as he does so. It feels like his erection has reached its full height below me, and I cautiously remove an arm from around his neck and slide it down his chest to his hips. I slowly work my hand down further, until I palm his bulge over the fabric of his swim trunks. I hear him inhale sharply as I do, and he works his mouth down from my ear to where my neck and shoulder meet.

I close my eyes, reveling in the feeling. Emboldened, I continue to rub at him through his swim trunks, before slipping my hand under the fabric and sliding it down, his hips lifting slightly in the water to help. By sliding the trunks just down to his mid thighs, his erection springs free, and I wrap my finger around his thick shaft, and slowly slide them up.

When my hand makes contact, my eyes open wide, and I’m so glad he’s kissing my shoulders, unable to see my face. I didn’t know a penis could be so… big. I continue to glide my hand up and down along the shaft, feeling how wide it is around, how I might be able to grasp it with both hands. I’ve had partners before, but I get the feeling that Aadit might be… above average in this department. 

When I run my thumb just below his tip, I hear him moan softly into my neck, and he pulls his head back up to connect with my lips once more. I quickly close my eyes and lean into it, trying to get back into the groove. I grips his hard cock just a little bit tighter and he shivers, moaning now into his mouth, and I can’t help but smile as we continue to kiss, sucking on his lower lip. 

His hand below my swim top, he pushes the fabric up, my breast both falling out of the fabric, and he pinches softly at one of my nipples. His hand that was squeezing my ass meets my hand around his shaft, pumping it slightly faster, before pulling my hand up to his chest. His arm goes back down below, and he uses it to pull my hips closer to his, to grind against his erection. I let out a breathy giggle when he does, shivering slightly, just separated by one measly layer of fabric. My back slightly arches, causing my breast to fully rise out of the water now, my nipples already hard from excitement in the now cold air. He lowers his head to gently suck on one, before kissing up to the bottom of my chin, my head still tilted back.

“Liss…” He practically moans my name, his voice breathy and strained. “I…” He slides his hand from my hip and cups the front of my swimsuit with his hand, squeezing it. 

“Oh… unh!” My breath hitches as I moan, and I lean forward again, my forehead touching his. 

“Can I… Can we?” I nod in response, my eyes shut tight as his finger sneaks below the fabric. I know we’re in the water, but I know I’m already dripping, excited for what’s to come. Instead of playing slowly like he did that night in the summer, he immediately slides deeper, finding my tight hole and slipping inside. 

“Oh!” I call out as he pumps it in once, twice, before sliding it out, his hand pulling down the fabric of my bottoms.

“Lissy, I want you so bad.” His mouth is pressed into my ears, his lips barely moving as he speaks.

“Please, Aadit.” I nod again, somehow already out of breath as I raise my hips. He slides the bottoms off and holds them tightly in one of his fists, his arms both wrapping around the back of my neck pulling me in close. I grind against him, his hard cock sliding between the folds of my cunt, and I rock back and forth, teasing, not letting him in. He drops an arm, now tightly grabbing my hip, my ass.

“Licity, please, I want you on me. I want me in you.” I smile against his lips, aching for him as well. I lift up, circling my hips to try and find the tip of his cock. He feels so thick, I’m not sure for a second if I can fit him inside of me, but I slowly lower myself down, his tip pressed against my tight entrance. 

I brace myself, and he whimpers as I lower slightly, just allowing his tip inside of me, wanting to work myself up slowly to having his full, long cock inside of me. I bounce just once, maybe twice, him barely inside of me, the tip of his penis already feeling as if it’s stretching me. I moan his name into his ear, and bite at his earlobe as he sighs and whimpers again.

Suddenly, though, I hear the engine of a DeeDee approaching the front of the hot springs shack, and Aadit and I both whip our heads around to look towards the noise. We hear the brakes squeal, and the sound of someone hitting the snow. 

“Shit.” I pull myself off of him, and his eyes go wide, looking at the situation we’re in. I pull my swim top down, covering my breasts once again, and he hands me my bottoms while frantically trying to pull his own up. We hear the front door of the shack open as we try to redress ourselves, to act as if nothing would happen. As I pull up my bottoms I notice him just watching me, his eyes now sad again but in a different way, perhaps longing. The bottoms on, I give him half a smile and a shrug. He sighs.

“Stopped again, I guess.” He reaches out, pushing a stray hair behind my ear. I shake my head, but smile.

“Just don’t ignore me for several months again, okay?” He smiles now, and I lean up to give him a small peck on the mouth. My hand on his thigh, I can feel he’s still fully erect, and I can’t stop myself from sliding my hand down, squeezing what I think is the bottom of his shaft then pulling away, giving him a wink as I scoot back just as the back door opens. His eyes go wide, but he presses his lips together tightly, turning to look out straight ahead as Gale walks out the door.

“Licity! Good to see you here. You did a great job.” He pauses at the end of the dock, glancing at Aadit. “Oh, Aadit! Good to see you, but how did you know the hot springs were… ready?” Aadit turns to face him, cheeks flushed, more hair now falling out of his bun. I bite my lip and turn to face Gale to keep from smiling. 

“Oh, um. Dawa told me. I thought it was… open.” Gale laughs. 

“Of course he would know.” He lowers himself down into the wooden floating pool, sinking into the warm water. I smile at him. 

“It’s nice to see you Gale, but I was actually just on my way out. I make my way over to the ladder and pull myself out, quickly wrapping my towel around me. “I’ll see you later, though, probably. I found that book Ginger was looking for and was going to bring it over.” He nods and smiles. 

“That’s great! I’m glad you and my Ginger get along so well.” I nod. 

“I’ll see you two later.” As I walk towards the door, I turn and look back. Aadit’s shifting in the water uncomfortably, and I can tell he most likely has his hands resting over his crotch.

“Are you leaving too, Aadit?” Gale asks.

“Um, no. I think I might stay another couple of minutes.” I try to hide my small laugh as I walk into the shack’s little locker room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! See you all next week when they finally BONE? Or maybe NOT? Who knows! Not me I haven't written the chapter yet hehe


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of uh,,, sex in this one.

I walk out of the Research Center with Petra, holding a number of data discs I found while ruin diving. I had tried to ask Merlin if she could use them, but being Merlin she had sent me to Petra, who was positively delighted with what she could glean from the discs. Merlin had kicked us out for being too loud, so we had decided to head to Martha’s bakery to grab a coffee and discuss. Petra is practically bouncing with excitement, an emotion I had previously thought she was incapable of expressing.

“I mean with the data from these discs, you could really get your hands on some fancy machinery! There's so many tools that they had in the old world that eluded us— Oh!” While walking backwards and talking to me, Petra bumped into someone who was exiting the building. Aadit has a bag in one hand, and his other arm now gently holding Petra on her mid back to keep her from tumbling over. She steadies herself, and Aadit steps out of the doorway, letting it close behind him.

“Oh, Aadit, my bad. I didn’t see you there. Got caught up in some data.” She purses her lips, taking a step back. He smiles warmly but briefly at her and nods his head.

“It’s alright. Just wouldn’t want you to fall over and hurt yourself.” He notices me behind Petra and smiles for real, but quickly tries to press his lips tightly together. “Licity. Hi.” I bite my lip, unable to contain my own, probably goofy, smile. 

“Hi.” I squeeze my hands in front of me, just taking him in. 

“Hi.” He says it again, continuing to make eye contact with me, both of us awkwardly smiling at each other in silence. Petra lets out a small cough, and he shakes his head a little, remembering she’s there. His expression becomes more serious, and he nods at her.

“It was nice seeing you two. Have a good day.” He looks at me one last time before exiting the building walking towards Peach Plaza. I give him a little wave as he goes. 

I’m a little dazed, but quickly notice Petra giving me an odd look. I bite the inside of my cheek.

“I, uh, did a little work at the Tree Farm.” She rolls her eyes and walks into the building and to the counter to look at the baked goods. I follow her in, quickly.

“I wouldn’t peg you two as… friends.” She says the word with a sour tone, then looks up from the case at Martha. “Could I just get a cappuccino?” I hold up a finger and Martha looks at me.

“Me too? Please?” She nods and moves over to the espresso machine, and Petra crouches down to look at the pastries. “I mean, he seems like a nice guy. And I’ve only been here a little less than a year, I thought it would be good to try and befriend as much of the town as I can.” She throws a look up at me, then stands. “Why, is he like a big weirdo or something?” 

She shakes her head, looking at a particularly large muffin. “I mean, I don’t know him at all, really. Seems kinda…” She waves a hand around. “Anti-tech? I know he goes to the Church of Light pretty often, and Lee is always riding Merlin’s and my ass about something.” She finally looks at me. “And I mean, I don’t know you, like, too incredibly well, but you’re a builder and a person of science, you know?” 

Martha brings over the cappuccinos and Petra and I grab them, taking the drinks to a table by the window. Petra sets down the data discs in front of her and picks them up one by one in turn, examining them. I take a sip of my drink and look out to the wishing tree.

“I don’t know, I mean, I don’t know him that well either I guess, but I don’t think everyone who goes to the church is anti-tech, you know? I mean, Gale goes and he commissions half the crap I do.” Petra nods and takes a sip of her drink. “I go sometimes too.” She looks right at me now, confused. 

“What?” I nod, setting my drink down.

“Yeah, like I said, I’m trying to get to know people, and it’s a good place to get to know and meet people. Besides,” I pick my drink up again, “Emily’s grandma always makes me go with her when Emily invites me over for Sunday lunch.” Petra finally smiles and lets out a small snort.

“That’s fair.” She picks up a data disc and holds it out to me. “Back to the disc, I think we could really get some good stuff out of these. If you can keep…” 

I nod like I’m listening, but my mind is wandering, thinking of Aadit’s smile. How nice, to see him in public, without him dashing away. I hadn’t been able to see him since the hot springs, busy working on my own little commissions, and him probably at the tree farm. I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him, about our bodies, pressed together, the feeling of my hand wrapped around his large— 

“So I can have these, right? You don’t want them?” I blink, brought back by Petra’s question.

“Uh…” 

“I mean, I’ll send you any blueprints I get off of them, of course, but I can keep them?” I nod.

“Yeah! Sure, of course. I can bring more to the center as I find them too.” She smiles, sitting straight up in her chair.

“Oh, perfect! You have no idea how much this will help us, we—” I zone her out again, taking a sip of my drink and nodding. Maybe I’ll go to the Tree Farm later.

*****************************************

It’s only about 6:30, but with how short the days are in the winter here I know I don’t have much daylight left. I glance at my clock, then the door, and quickly bundle up in my coat and scarf to head down to the tree farm before it gets too late. As I run towards the farm I bump into Dawa, his arms practically sticking straight out from how thick his coat is. 

“Licity! Great to see you. Oh, did you need me at the farm? We can head back—” I shake my head, sticking my hands out in a limp “stop” motion.

“No, no, sorry, I just had a quick question for Aadit. Is he in there or..?” Dawa nods.

“Yep! Good worker, that one. Glad he showed up to help out, it was a beast to do it all by myself!” He laughs harshly and I try to disguise my grimace as a smile, nodding with him. I glance at the entrance to the tree farm and back to Dawa, who’s struggling to wipe a tear from his face.

“Welp, if you do change your mind and need some wood, I’ll be here tomorrow, bright and early! I’m going to Siwa’s, I’ve got to run and catch a DeeDee.” He looks back up at me. “Say, you should put a DeeDee stop closer to the Tree Farm! That sure would be nice.” I nod and cut him off.

“Oh, yeah! Sounds great. I’ll get on that. I’ll let you go get that DeeDee, I just want to pop in and out quick before it gets dark.” He starts to shuffle off and attempts to wave.

“Sounds great, I’ll see ya later!” I don’t wait for him to get far before I start again for the farm, looking around when I get inside for Aadit. I don’t see him, but I hear the sounds of an ax deeper in. I trek in further.

Quite a ways in, near the river, I finally find Aadit, chopping down a smaller tree. About twenty feet out from him I step on a branch, and it cracks loudly. He whips around, but when he sees me his expression changes from fear to happiness for a brief moment, but then he suddenly looks incredibly serious, an extreme mood swing from how he looked at me this morning. I hope I didn’t do something back. I stay put, waving at him from a distance.

“Hey!” His face is red, and even in the cold I can see him sweating from exertion, most likely incredibly hot under his coat. His eyes dash from me towards the front of the farm and back. He tilts his head towards the front, but doesn’t stop looking at me.

“Dawa?” He yells out. He takes a slow step forward, then another, still listening for a response. 

“Oh, he went to his brothers for dinner, I think. I spoke to him—” No sooner than I’ve said the words, Aadit drops the ax in his hands, his pace towards me quickening until it’s almost a full sprint. I’m afraid he’s going to slam into me, but when our bodies finally do connect he’s gentle, picking me up and swinging me around in a circle to pull me in for a kiss. 

He sets me back on the ground. I look up at him, feeling a mixture of shock and joy, a pure adrenaline rush as I smile and giggle. He bends down, his forehead touching mine. I don’t even care that he’s sweaty.

“I’ve been waiting to do that,” he says, his voice low. I giggle again.

“Hi.” He smiles now, the corner of his eyes crinkling as he does.

“Hi.” We gaze into each other’s eyes for a few seconds before I slide my hand up to the back of his head, pulling him in for another kiss, a longer one. I’m melting into him, my other arm thrown now over the back of his shoulders. Our bodies rock and we pull at each other, trying to get even closer. 

He pulls away, straightening up to his full height again, a dreamy look in his eyes. I try to stand on my tiptoes to reach him, but can’t connect with his mouth for more than a second at a time. He laughs, sounding full and hearty as his hands go to my hips and I jump, wrapping my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist, able to pull each other in once more. 

While he doesn’t struggle to hold me up, he moves forward, our lips still connected, pushing my back up against a tree for support. His body presses further into me, pinning me against the tick trunk. One of his hands moves from under my thigh, sliding up over my jacket over my breast. With so many layers of fabric between us it doesn’t feel as nice or as sharp, but I appreciate how close he is to me that I don’t really think of anything else. He tries to kiss my jaw, but quickly runs into a problem with my thick scarf, the fuzzy fabric covering my neck and jawline. He presses his mouth into my ear, his breath hot.

“Hold on, for just a moment.” My body slowly lowers down the side of the tree as he bends over, a little room now between us. As he sucks on my earlobe, he begins to unzip my jacket and I shrug it off. I tug off the scarf as well, throwing it down on my pile. He lifts me again, pinning me to the tree as I wrap my legs around him a second time. His hand slides under my shirt now, and I can feel him smile against my neck as he traces a finger against the skin of my breast just above the bra. I smile now, my own mouth now pressed into his ear.

“Better?” He nods, and moves from my neck back to my mouth as he deftly massages my breast, lifting it slightly out of the cup to pinch my nipple between his fingers. I let out a small whimper into his mouth as I feel his cold fingers against my sensitive skin, then sigh, enjoying the feeling. He continues to pinch and roll as our hips slowly grind against each other, small moans coming from both of us. I can feel myself getting wet as he continues to grow harder against me. 

His mouth leaves mine quickly, a small sharp almost whimper coming from him as he makes his way to my ear, pressing against it once again. His hip rocks forward, once, twice.

“Liss, god. I…” I nod, trying to pull his head up to suck on his neck, pulling off his hat to lock my fingers into his hair. I continue rolling my hips into his, imagining how he would feel inside of me, his length filling me up, stretching me out. I don’t know whether I’m shivering from the cold or from anticipation.

He pulls my head up now, kissing me sharply on the lips, down my neck, across the top of my shirt. He pinches my nipple harder and I let out a real moan now, louder than I had thought it would be.

“Oh, Aadit, doll…” My head tilts back as Aadit slides me down the tree again, crouching lower. He continues to move down even as I hit the ground, kissing my breast above my shirt, back to my neck, while trying to unbutton my jeans. I hear the zipper go and Aadit now drops to his knees, pulling my pants down and kissing lower, above the soaked fabric of my panties. He pulls the jeans off, one of my boots coming off with it, but I don’t even notice. 

The air is freezing around me, but I can feel how hot and wet it is in between my thighs now in contrast. Aadit slides his hands back up against my thighs, over the sides of my underwear, and begins to slowly pull them down, his tongue tracing after the fabric against the now exposed skin. I shiver again, my fingers now firmly laced between his hair. As he licks my inner thigh, he grabs one of my legs and throws it over his shoulder, granting him better access to me. 

His tongue slides in between the folds now, slowly tracing up and down, over my aching, dripping hole until he finds my clit. His tongue flicks against it, hard and slow, but quickly begins to pick up speed as my breath hitches and I moan again, louder this time. I rock forward, but a hand comes up again, pushing me back into the tree. His hand slides down, up my thigh, until his fingers find their way to my cunt. He slides a finger back and forth, until sliding one in, pumping it in and out as he continues to lick and suck at my clit. I want to fold again, but push myself harder back into the tree, pushing my pussy further into his face. My back arches against the tree. 

“Nng, oh, oh Aadit… Fuck.” I grit my teeth together as he continues, his tongue tracing circles around my sensitive nub, his finger keeping rhythm. I try to slide the leg over his shoulder closer into his head, involuntarily as I feel the pressure building in my body, but he takes his hand out of me and pushes the leg back against the tree, spreading my legs even farther apart for access. He looks up at me, his slight beard slick from me, smiling when he sees the almost pained expression on my face.

“Can’t have that, can we? I can’t get in with your legs closed.” I close my eyes, desperate for him to continue. 

“Aadit, please keep— oh, god, unnhh.” My breath is shaky as he dives back in, his tongue penetrating me as he laps at my pussy, licking my tight hole. He makes his way back towards my clit, and angles his body so that his shoulder is putting pressure on my other leg on the ground, to keep me from squeezing again. He slides his other hand up now, a finger pumping inside of me once again. I moan, even louder, saying his name as I do. My labored breaths quicken, the pressure inside of me unbearable.

Without warning, he slides another finger inside of me and I yelp. His fingers pump faster, harder, stretching me out. My legs are shaking as I arch my back, gripping his hair tightly in between my fingers. 

“Oh, fuck, Aadit.” I’m whimpering, his fingers curling inside of me, when suddenly the tension in my body releases. My whole body convulses, once, twice, more as I’m wracked with pleasure, the orgasm washing over me, as he continues to lick and suck. I can feel my cunt tightening around his fingers, pulsing inside of me still. My cum squirts out, something I hadn’t been aware of being capable of, and he continues to lick without question. I whimper as I shake slightly, overwhelmed from sensation.

“Aadit, please.” He pulls his fingers out of me with a wet plop noise, and looks up at me, smiling. “Aadit, I want you so bad, I want you inside of me. He stands up, his mouth crashing into mine. I can taste myself on his lips as I pull him in with one arm, frantically trying to unzip his own pants with the other. He slides his hands down to pull down his pants himself and his erection springs loose, pressing against my stomach. I grab it, pumping his large cock, precum already leaking out. He bites my lip, whimpering from pleasure. 

He pulls himself back suddenly and I stumble forward, wanting his body against mine. He looks down at me, mouth open, panting. 

“I don’t... it’s going to be hard, upright, with the height.” It takes my brain a moment to process what he’s saying, but my eyes grow wide when I understand. 

“Oh, yeah.” He pulls his underwear and pants back up, his erection still visible under the fabric. I slide my own pants back on, shoving my underwear in my coat as I put it back on. He grabs my hand and smiles when I’m done.

“Come on.” He takes off, practically dragging me behind him as he makes his way towards the cabin at the front of the Tree farm. I’m amazed by him, staring at the back of his head as he continues to dash towards the front, deftly avoiding trees and stumps as he guides us. He bounds up the steps as we arrive, practically knocking down the door as he opens it. He pulls me inside, and after locking the door spins around and pulls me into a kiss, our bodies pushing into each other. 

Clothes fly off— coats, followed by shirts and pants. I fling my bra off, now completely naked. He’s down to just his boxers, but pauses to take me in as he sees me fully undressed. His eyes drink me in as I awkwardly smile, and when his eyes meet mine they practically sparkle. He steps in close, pulling my face to his to kiss me, deeply, slower than we frantically were before. He moves to my ear, sucking on the earlobe.

“You are…” He takes a deep breath. “So beautiful.” I giggle, and jump up, wrapping my legs around him again. He’s surprised, but catches me.

“You’re not so bad yourself.” He smiles, then begins to kiss me again, pulling my body in close and making his way to a bed. He lays me down on my back and crawls on top of me, pushing my body flat onto the bed. He raises his hips and slides his hands out from underneath me, and pulls his boxers down and off. His massive cock springs out once again and I grab it, greedy. His breath hitches when I make contact, and he brings his hand up, pulling my hand off of his dick pinning it on the bed above my head. My eyes grow wide but I smile. He gazes down at me.

“I… I’m gonna go slow. I don’t want it to hurt.” He’s so earnest, so eager. I nod, and he leans down, kissing me gently. He guides his tip to my hole, dripping once again with anticipation. He rolls his hips, slowly, and I gasp as I feel his cock enter me, slowly, just a fragment. I bite my lip, and his head lifts slightly. 

“All good?” I nod.

“Keep going. I’ll let you know.” He rolls his his again, slowly beginning to pump his cock in and out, little by little. My head tilts back and I grit my teeth, not from pain but from pleasure as I feel him stretch me out. I moan his name, my breathing getting quicker, heavier. His arm props him up, and with his free hand he slides his fingers up my chest, up around my neck, lightly, barely touching the skin, then back down to my breast, rolling the hard nipple.

“Oh, Aadit, fuck. Keep, oh, keep going.” I open my eyes, nodding, and I see him watching my face, making sure that he’s not hurting me. He smiles when we make eye contact and begins to pump a little faster, more of him inside of me now. We watch each other for a moment smiling as he fucks me, a little bit harder as he goes, before he closes his own eyes.

“Nnngh!” He lets out a whimper of sorts, his forehead falling to touch mine, and his breathing picks up as he pumps in and out of me, his cock stretching me out. My toes curl as he continues, and I grab his hip, desperate to get his full length inside of me. I lift my hips, trying to rock into him, feeling tight in my core once again as he rams into my. 

“Fuck, Aadit! You’re going to make me cum again.” He pinches my nipple hard, fucking me faster. I moan loudly, my hands moving to his back, my nails digging in involuntarily. I drag them down his back, the pressure building unbearably until I feel the sweet release again. I cry out— his name, a curse, I’m not sure, my vision going black as my hips rock and I feel the pain and the pleasure in waves throughout my body. I want to wrap my arms around him, to cling, and I feel my cunt tighten around his cock. 

He’s moaning too into my ear, more coming out with each thrust, words I’m not processing as I shake from pleasure below him, until he finally pulls out of me, back onto his knees as his cock pulses. Hot, thick cum spurts out, covering my exposed stomach and even breast, as he closes his eyes, gritting his teeth from the pleasure. He bends over into a table position above me, his hands resting next to my arms and pants, the cum coming out slowly until it stops, resting on my stomach. 

He pants, opening his eyes, looking down at me. We stare at each other silently, both still shaking from release until he lets out a small pained laugh. He lowers down enough to kiss my forehead, but then stands up off of the bed. 

“Let me, uh, get some tissues, or a towel.” He moves over to a cabinet and bends over to go through its contents. I admire his taunt ass, how the muscles in his back move as he does. I hadn’t really considered what he looked like under his clothes until the hot spring. What I couldn’t take my eyes off was the scars covering his body, down his back, his legs. He turns around, his dick getting softer but a victorious look on his face as he waves a towel. The scars go down his chest and stomach, too. 

I smile as he comes back, and help him as he tries to wipe the mess off of my body. He throws it in a hamper and then looks at me. I bite my lip.

“Did you… am I supposed to go?” His eyes go wide, and he shakes his head no.

“No! No. I was simply…” His eyes go up and down my body, “admiring.” He walks back, and lays down entirely on top of me, then pushes me over towards the inside of the bed. “Besides, I simply won’t allow you to go into the dark cold.” He kisses my nose. I smile, kissing him softly on the lips.

“What about Dawa?” He wraps his arm around me tighter, pulling me in even closer. 

“He won’t come back until tomorrow.” He places his head on the pillow next to me, and I lay down too. “He always gets incredibly drunk at his brother’s. It’d be a miracle if he’s home by noon.” I smile, and kiss him again. I wrap my legs between his.

“Good.” He slides a hand up my back to pull my head in closer to his, kissing me deeply.

“I want you to stay, Liss. Stay the night with me.” I nod, going in for another kiss. 

Our bodies intertwined, we spend the rest of the night tangled in his sheets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe thanks for reading! also I decided I hate schedules you'll just get the chapters as I write them. Mwah xoxo see you soon
> 
> also how the heck do you write sex noises how do I translate that idk I'll work on it I guess


	13. Chapter Thirteen

My eyes flutter open, and for a second I’m afraid— the wooden paneling of the walls isn’t mine, this isn’t my bed— before I feel Aadit’s arms wrapped around me and remember the events of last night. I fell asleep wrapped in his arms, our legs intertwined, still naked. My head rests on his chest. I try to stay still, listening to the sounds of his breathing. He’s so calm.

Not long after I wake up, I can feel his penis growing hard against my leg, in his sleep. I smile but don’t move, afraid to wake him. After another moment his breathing changes, and he slowly stretches his legs out, and gently pulls me in tighter. I think he still thinks I’m asleep. We lay in silence, until I finally move my head to look up at him. He’s staring up at the ceiling, but when he feels me move below him he looks down. He kisses my forehead. 

“Good morning.” His voice is low, practically a growl, his throat still thick from sleep. I stretch now against him, our skin rubbing, my legs sliding between his. I crane my neck up and kiss him. 

“Good morning.” He gazes into my eyes, but before I can ask him what he’s thinking he shifts below me, his one arm moving up to my chest, his fingers lazily tracing circles below my collar bone. I smile, and try to press my body even closer into him. I don’t want this moment to ever end.

He shifts his head away from me, reading a clock over on the opposite wall and sighs.

“Dawa will probably be back in about an hour.” I moan, displeased, and push my head into his neck.

“I just wanna stay here.” I kiss below his jaw line, and he slides his hand down from my collarbone back to my waist, pulling me closer. I feel his cock twitch against my leg. 

“Me too.” He kisses my forehead again and sighs. I reach up to his face, pulling it down towards mine and kiss him again, latching my fingers in his hair. I can feel him smile as I suck on his lip, biting it gently and pulling away. He smiles widely now, and I feel his grip on my waist tighten. He moves from under me now, propping himself on his side, and grabs my face to pull me in. I slowly trace my fingers down his chest, and lightly drag them over the erection I now feel against my stomach. He shivers slightly. His mouth finds my ear and bites my earlobe softly. 

“I guess we have a little time still.” He bites his lip, and then kisses me again, a hand finding its way to my breast. I continue to slowly stroke his cock, my fingertips lightly grazing against it. My hand moves lower; I run my fingers against his now taught balls, gently cupping and squeezing before my fingers move their way back up. He shivers again, and gently guides me onto my back, climbing on top of me.

The hand that was on my breast slides down, his fingers now exploring my more southern regions, searching for the wet entrance. As his finger connects with my clit, I let out a soft moan into his mouth, and my hands that were grabbing the back of his neck dig in. A small laugh escapes my lips as he continues to rub at the sensitive spot and bites the tip of my nose then rubs his own against it.

“You’re already so wet for me,” he whispers, his eyes sparkling. I lift my head to his, and playfully bite the tip of his nose now.

“And you’re already hard for me.” I push up now with my full body, surprising him, flipping him onto his back. He looks shocked that I was able to do it, but I have a feeling he’s restraining himself, being overly careful. Even as he fucked me last night, it felt as if he was still holding back, not wanting to scare me off. 

My hair falls down past my face onto his, and he shakes his head slightly to clear it from his eyes. I sit on his stomach and can feel his erection against my back, a slight hint of precum already. I bend down to kiss him, and slowly roll my hips back, attempting to line myself up with him. 

The tip connects with my tight hole, and I push back, rocking my hips into him as his eyes roll back then shut, his face already showing signs of pleasure. I rock my hips a few times, slowly, him filling me up, almost painfully stretching. He lets out a labored moan, and a hand squeezes my ass, guiding the motions. His hips buck up to meet mine. 

I’m still sore from last night, not yet used to him, as gentle as he was. I slide off and his eyes open.

“Are you… everything okay?” He looks concerned, and I bend over to kiss his forehead and nod.

“I thought I’d just try something new.” I slide further down on the bed, taking his cock in my hands. He cups my cheek with his hand, stroking it with his thumb. I smile, then lower my mouth to the tip of his penis. As my mouth parts around it, he lets out a small moan, and his head drops to the pillow again.

I bob up and down, sucking, licking gently around the tip. I feel his fingers make their way into my hair, gripping it. I take the opportunity to bob down farther, slowly taking more of him in my mouth. His hand rests on the back of my head, hesitant. I pull off, my mouth making a loud Pop! noise.

“You can, you know, show me what you want.” His eyes fly open.

“What?” 

“I mean, like, with your hand. It feels like you kinda, want to push? I don’t know how else to describe it.” His jaw drops, and he opens and closes his mouth like he’s trying to find the words. “Aadit, it’s okay. It’s not like you’re pressuring me into it. Just… don’t be afraid to help guide it.”

Before he can respond I take him in my mouth again, pushing just a little bit further. I feel his thighs tense, a small surprised breath escaping his lips. Before long I feel the hand on the back of my head, it slowly pushing, not too hard, suggesting a rhythm. I hum understanding, and begin bopping my head up and down to his hand, licking and sucking all the while.

I use one hand to pump at the base, the other one going further down to gently massage his balls. I’m swirling my tongue, trying to push down further, harder. I can hear his breathing speeding up, his thighs tensing. I love to see him like this, face twisted in sweet agony. I let go and brace myself, trying to go fully down to his base. 

I gag, I can feel him hitting the back of my throat. My eyes are tearing up, but he’s moaning out loudly now, so I keep going. I can feel him twitch in my mouth, giving me only a moment's notice before his hips buck, a final cry of pleasure coming out of his mouth. The hot cum shoots down my throat. I hate the taste, trying not to gag as I take it. It helps, his hand on the side of my head, holding me. As the last of it comes out I lift my head. 

He opens his eyes, dazed and kind of cloudy and stares at me, a small smile on the corner of his lips. I smile too, then mischievously bend back down, licking the tip again. He grits his teeth, letting out a small cry as I giggle.

“Hey! Hey, let’s give it a rest.” I laugh, crawling back up to give him a small kiss. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me in tight and rolling on top of me. “You really are insatiable here, huh?” He smothers my face with little kisses, and I laugh and try to wiggle my way out.

“Alright, alright!” He pins my arms above my head, but stops rolling around over me. His eyes scan my face, a goofy smile on his. I smile back, but feel my stomach drop a little. I sigh. 

“I should probably get going.” His smile drops now, as does his head. He smooshes his body into mine, dead weight on top of me.

“I wish you didn’t have to.” I wiggle my arms out from under him, wrapping them around his neck.

“Me too.” He raises his face to meet mine, then pushes his mouth to mine. My lips part around his. After a minute of our bodies pressing into each other, I pull back, sighing as he kisses my neck. “I really need to go.”

He puts his head down on my chest once more, sighing. I feel him plant a kiss just above my collarbone, then he pulls himself off, getting off the bed. I sit upright and watch him as he opens a set of drawers, pulling out a thick sweater and pulling it over his head, once again covering his scars. I hop out of the bed and begin to search for my clothes on the floor.

Once dressed, I turn to him. He looks serious again. Gone is the soft Aadit from the night before, replaced by the stoic one I’m used to seeing around town. I move to give him a hug and he pulls me in tight, kissing the top of my head.

“Well, I guess I should head out.” I look at the clock above Aadit’s shoulder— it’s a little past eleven. He hums in agreement.

“Let’s do this again sometime, hm?” I let out a small laugh, then stand on my tiptoes to give him one last kiss. I bundle myself up, and he follows me out the door.

“I’ll see you later, around.” He smiles and waves, and heads deeper into the trees, probably to find the axe he abandoned there last night. I truck out of the Tree Farm.

I’m barely out of the gates when I see Dawa trudging home, a hand on the top of his head. He’s swaying slightly, probably still sick from the night he spent with his brothers. I look around, panicked, but there’s nowhere for me to hide unless I run back in. It’s already too late.

“Oh! Licity! What a surprise to see you here again, uh,” He pauses, and tilts his head to look at me. “Were you just leaving?” I can feel my face blush. Shit.

“Um, no! You, had uh, mentioned putting in a DeeDee stop here last night,” I say, picking up steam as more words come out of my mouth, “So I came back to uh, check out where a good spot would be! Probably about here, I think. Where I am. Just had to… walk back and forth on this path here to really feel it out.” He nods, I don’t think fully believing me, but suddenly he grows pale and makes a face. He tries to hide a small groan.

“Oh, uh, sounds good, I really gotta go, see you later!” He runs off before I can react, taking off towards his house. I look back and forth, flustered, unsure if what I said worked or not, but decided to head off before I run into anyone else.

I get back to my house and flop onto my bed. I stare at the ceiling for a brief moment, before breaking out into laughter. 

Oh my god! That happened! All of that happened! I grab a pillow, muffling the sounds coming out of my mouth. I can’t believe it! I roll over, feeling like a dumb little girl with a school-yard crush. What’s happening to me? I finally get up out of my bed, and decide to shower before I make anything to eat. The water will help me process, I think.

I let the water stream over me as I stand in the shower, staring at the wall. Absentmindedly, I run my hands over my body, lingering on the places where I remember him touching me. Maybe Ginger was right, was I already in love? I shake my head, then turn around so the water hits my hair. I think for the first time, in quite a while, I was truly happy. Not just because of Aadit, I think, though it was a plus. 

Having come from Baranarock, I had been devastated. My mother had just passed, I was unhappy in my career, I had ended a relationship that I had honestly hated from the start, only staying in it because he made my mother happy. I had no one left here. But moving to Portia, it was like the entire trajectory of my life had changed. I was passionate about what I was doing, I had solid friends for the first time ever, really. And now there was him, there was Aadit. It was like it was all really coming together, even if there was that thing with Gust—

I choke on the water, not realizing that I had titled my head in a way that it would go into my nose. I had forgotten about him. Shit. There was definitely something there too. I shake my head, and finish up washing my body. If there really had been something there, I probably wouldn’t have forgotten about him, right? And Aadit actually outwardly like me, something drew me more to him, whereas I hadn’t thought about Gust that way before he kissed me. I step out of the shower and dry off. I study myself in the bathroom mirror, noticing more than a few little love bites on my chest.

Humming, I get dressed. This was right. I was choosing Aadit, and he was choosing me. 

*********************************************

Once again, it’s ladies night. I bound into the Round Table, excited to get out of the cold. Antoine, Emily and Sonia are already at the table, but my face drops when I see both Albert and Gust with the group as well. I try to hide my disappointment, smiling widely and waving with both my hands as I walk over. Thankfully, Gust is sandwiched in between Albert and Sonia, so I sit next to Emily at enough of an angle where I don’t have to look at Gust directly.

Antoine is prattling on about something Dr. Xu said to him. I can barely keep up. As he continues to ramble, I notice Emily playing with her sleeve, thumbing the fabric. I grab her hand, and as I lift it up the edge of her sleeve falls slightly to reveal some kind of knotted bracelet.

“Oooh, what’s this?” I bite my lip, smiling as she pulls her hand back. Sonia’s jaw drops.

“Em, no way! Why didn’t you tell us?” I keep smiling, but tilt my head, confused. Emily blushes. 

“I didn’t want to make a big deal about it, ya know? And it’s new, Alice only gave it to me today.” Gust whistles, low and slow. I look at Antoine, trying to get his attention. It’s a bracelet? Gust holds out his hand, and Emily tentatively puts her hand in his. Gust examines it.

“Looks like Alice put some real effort into this one, not like the others she sells.” He drops her hand and leans back, arms crossed. “Sure know how to catch them, Em.”

“Girlie, good job.” Sonia claps her hands together a few times, then clasps them and brings them up to her cheek. “Oh, I can’t wait for someone to bring me a heart knot someday.” She throws Albert a look out of the corner of her eye, quickly, but I catch it. Unable to hold it in anymore, I finally lean forward.

“Wait, what’s a heart knot?” Albert turns to me now.

“Oh, it’s this thing in Portia, I guess. When you and another person make it official, you exchange them to show you’re taken. It was a bit confusing for me too when I moved here.” Gust rolls his eyes, and pipes up.

“Portia is a small town, so over the years little… traditions have grown into bigger deals, like the heart knot or the apology bears. It’s rather over commercialized now for my taste.” I nod, then turn to Emily.

“My bad, I just thought you got a fun little bracelet.” She blushes, and Sonia laughs. I laugh along, but quickly pause. “Wait, what’s an apology bear?” Gust opens his mouth to speak, but then presses his lips together in confusion. Sonia taps the table twice.

“Ooh! I know that one. Django thought he placed an order for 20 teddy bears for the prize counter back there but accidentally ordered 200 so he made up some story about how they're for apologies.” She nods vigorously, taking a sip from her drink. Gust’s face contorts.

“That can’t be true. Apology bears have been a thing since we were children.” Sonia sets her drink down.

“Gust, Django moved here when we were like five. He probably just told us that weird lie from a young age. None of the people in their like, 40s or above do it, haven’t you noticed?” Gust slumps back in his chair and crosses his arms, a puzzled look on his face. Albert pulls Sonia in, giving her a kiss on the cheek. She pretends not to like it.

“Finally! Someone stumps Mr. Know-it-All, excited to hear nothing but silence from him for the first time… ever.” The rest of the table but Gust laughs, enjoying the gentle ribbing. Gust turns his head away, but I can see the slight smile playing out across his lips.

I notice a tall figure entering the restaurant, completely bundled up from tip to toe. The figure pulls off his hat and unwraps their scarf, revealing Aadit below the thick wooly accessories. His eyes scan the room til he sees me and smiles. I give him a small wave and a tightly pressed smile, and he tilts his head in a hitherto motion. I turn to Emily as the others continue to lightly harass Gust. 

“I’ll be right back.” She nods, and I see her eyes flick from Aadit at the door back to me. 

“Sure.” She turns back to the group now, trying to conceal a smile from me. I head over to Aadit, trying not to appear too eager. I skid to a stop in front of him.

“Hey.” I already blew my cool and mysterious demeanor that I was trying to achieve— I’m smiling like an idiot. Thankfully, his own goofy smile appears in return. 

“Hey, Liss.” My friends call me Liss already, but hearing him say it just feels so good. We stare at each other for a moment before he seems to remember his purpose. “Oh, you left this at the Tree farm.” He pulls my scarf out of his coat pocket, folded up tightly. “It’s pretty cold out now, I thought you might need it.” I bite my lip.

“Ooooh, so you’re thinking about me?” I tease, and he responds by turning his head to the side, trying to hide his smile. He looks back down at me, and holds the scarf out to me. 

“Here.” I take it, sliding it into the pocket of my cardigan. “Stay warm, Liss. I’ll see you later.” He turns back around to head towards the door.

“I’ll see ya.” I turn back towards the table, but when I look up, the group is all turned towards me, Antoine’s mouth open in an excited smile, and Gust’s in a tight frown. I freeze, feeling a red blush creeping up from my neck, but then strut towards the table. I’ll play cool this time. When I sit, Antoine immediately jumps in.

“Soooooo… what were you two talking about? Secret midnight meetings? Torrid love affairs?” I meet his gaze, squinting to play serious.

“Drug deal.” Antoine burst out laughing, but Sonia leans forward. 

“Oooh, I knew something was up after the martial arts tournament! What are you two up to?” Her head is propped up on her hands. Emily takes a slow sip of her drink.

“It’s nothing. I’m putting in a DeeDee stop by the Tree Farm, and forgot my scarf. He was just returning it.” Sonia nods for a second, but then her face scrunches in thought.

“And how do you forget a scarf?” She asks, and Albert leans forward now. I clasp my hands together and bring them to my face, tapping my pointing fingers against my lips, thinking. I point them at her, ready to speak.

“Would you believe it fell off?” Albert slaps the table and points at me, a hearty laugh bursting from his chest. The rest of the table joins as I cover my eyes with my hands, embarrassed to have been caught so easily. I lower my hands after a moment to laugh with my friends, to show I can handle the teasing, happy to have finally found a group that I love. As I laugh along with the rest of my friends, though, taking in each of them in turn, I notice Gust sitting still, the same tight frown on his face, staring off into the distance. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> xoxo Gossip Girl
> 
> you know when I decided to write this fic this was as far as I planned in my head besides some major, in game cannon events and a few fluffy pieces to sprinkle in so uh, I guess we'll all see how this turns out from here


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